TEHRAN – The wood fuel used by around 425,000 households residing in the vicinity of forests has been replaced by renewable sources of energy, Davar Namdar, deputy director of the Forests, Ranges, and Watershed Management Organization, has said.

Pointing out that wood fuel would aggravate the degradation of natural resources, Namdar said that 8.5 million cubic meters of forests and 600,000 tons of desert bushes are used by households for fuel each year.

Land subsidence, sand and dust storms, groundwater depletion, lack of regeneration, species extinction, drying up of springs and salinization are partly related to deforestation and degradation of natural resources, he lamented.

Through the scheme, petroleum and gas stoves have been distributed in rural communities, in addition to gas cylinders and oil tankers, he explained, adding, some stations also have been set up in rural areas to sell petroleum and liquefied gas.

He went on to say that to enhance the use of renewable energies, some 20 households were provided with solar panels and some others with low-interest loans to afford the equipment.

One million hectares of the country's natural resources are being monitored with a budget from the National Development Fund to tackle all kinds of pests and diseases, he concluded.

FB/MG