TEHRAN — President Hassan Rouhani has tasked agriculture and foreign ministries with taking measures to fight duststorm ravaging the southwestern province of Khuzestan, the chief of the Department of Environment has said.

TEHRAN — President Hassan Rouhani has tasked agriculture and foreign ministries with taking measures to fight duststorm ravaging the southwestern province of Khuzestan, the chief of the Department of Environment has said.

Mentioning the cabinet meeting on Sunday Masoumeh Ebtekar highlighted that the president has urged Agriculture Minister Mahmoud Hojjati to speed mulch pouring operations in duststorm hotspots and planting trees in these areas, Mehr news agency reported on Monday.

He additionally ordered Foreign Minister Mohammad-Javad Zarif to follow up on the issues concerning both Iran and Iraq regarding dust storms and trans-boundary hotspots, Ebtekar pointed.

A report outlining Hour-al-Azim wetland current status was also presented at the meeting indicating that almost 70 percent of the wetland is restored.

However, MP Qasem Sa’edi has refuted the claims about Hour-al-Azim restoration saying that the wetland is almost dried up due to the oil extracting activities in the region.

“Despite what Department of Environment says the sources for the sandstorms are inside Iran and there is no evidence supporting the restoration of Hour-al-Azim wetland,” Sa’edi told Tasnim news agency.

MQ/MG