1.3-Meter Decrease in Caspian Sea Water Depth Over 20 Years

According to the director of the Caspian Sea Studies and Research Center, due to reduced rainfall and rising temperatures, the water depth of the Caspian Sea has decreased by 1.3 meters over the past 20 years. On Wednesday, December 2, Jawad Malek announced that 'the water level of the Caspian Sea has decreased compared to two years ago,' stating: 'The average water level of the Caspian Sea in the 2015-2016 water year was measured at negative 26.89 meters, which is a decrease of 22 centimeters compared to last year and 30 centimeters compared to two years ago.' The director of the National Caspian Sea Studies and Research Center noted that the highest water level of the Caspian Sea was recorded in the 1975-1976 water year, adding: 'Since that water year, the Caspian Sea has decreased by about 1.3 meters.' Mr. Malek pointed out that the Volga River delta, which supplies 80% of the Caspian Sea's water, was 24% lower in the spring of 2015 compared to the same period the previous year. According to this marine expert, 'the decrease in rainfall and rising temperatures are the two main factors contributing to the drop in the Caspian Sea's water level.' The 1.3-meter decrease in the Caspian Sea's water depth over the past 20 years comes at a time when Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the former President of Iran, intended to transfer water from this sea to central Iran. In late April 2012, it was reported that 'the plan to transfer water from the Caspian Sea to the central region of the country was initiated with the presence of the then-President.' The initial studies of this project included site selection and determining the optimal route for water from the southern shores of the Caspian Sea to the central regions of the country. This project was supposed to be implemented with the construction of a desalination plant with a capacity of about 200 million cubic meters per year, along with marine structures to extract water from the Caspian Sea, but it never reached the execution stage. On the other hand, regarding the decrease in the Caspian Sea's water and the reduction of water resources, Masoumeh Ebtekar, head of Iran's Department of Environment, stated on Tuesday, January 19, that by 2050, based on 'predictions,' drought and reduced precipitation in Iran will be 11 times 'the current conditions.' Additionally, Shahrokh Fateh, head of Iran's National Drought Center, reported on Tuesday, October 14, that there has been a continuous decrease in rainfall in 19 provinces over the past two years, considering this decrease as 'a warning sign of severe drought' in these regions of Iran. In this context, Farood Sharifi, deputy to the President's Technology Office, stated on October 1 that Iran has previously experienced ten drought periods from 1968 to 2004. Furthermore, aside from the issue of the Caspian Sea's depth reduction, Iranian officials have noted that only one-third of Lake Urmia, the largest internal lake in Iran and the second-largest saline lake in the world, remains. A significant portion of this lake has dried up in recent years.