150 Schools in Isfahan Province Affected by Land Subsidence; 42 Schools Evacuated

The Director General of Education in Isfahan Province announced that approximately 150 schools in the province have been affected by land subsidence, and "42 schools have been completely evacuated so far." According to the government news agency Tasnim, Mohammad Reza Ebrahimi discussed the latest status of schools affected by subsidence in Isfahan Province, stating that schools in this province have also been impacted by frequent subsidence. This provincial official added that most of the evacuated schools are located in the northern part of Isfahan County and in districts 4 and 5. He also mentioned that "a number of schools in the counties of Barkhar and Shahinshahr" have been evacuated, although schools in some other counties have also been evacuated. Ebrahimi emphasized that the rate of subsidence among the 150 schools affected varies from one to another. Regarding the response to the dangers of subsidence, this educational director stated that the "Renovation General Office" has ordered that some schools be evacuated, with parts of them being demolished and reconstruction operations starting, while other parts are being upgraded and reinforced. He added that subsidence has directly affected the educational environment of the province, and in this regard, the government and benefactors have come to help by establishing new structures in accordance with engineering standards to address this problem. In another report from the newspaper Etemad, Mahdi Zareh, a seismologist and professor at the Seismological Research Institute, announced in his latest assessments that about 11% of the total area of Iran is affected by the phenomenon of land subsidence. According to this seismologist, this phenomenon has engaged approximately 39 million residents of Iran in areas prone to this issue. He added that all provinces except Gilan are affected by subsidence. Zareh emphasized that the dimensions and rates of subsidence in different regions of Iran vary significantly. Reports indicate that nearly 25% of urban areas in Iran are facing varying degrees of subsidence. This researcher also explained that about 5% of the total area of the country is at severe risk of subsidence, while approximately 18.5 million hectares, equivalent to 11% of Iran's area, are affected by varying degrees of land subsidence. Zareh added that this problem is particularly noticeable in some provinces, including Tehran and Fars, where the rate of subsidence in certain areas exceeds 40 centimeters per year. Previously, Ali Bitollahi, head of the Earthquake Department at the Road, Housing and Urban Development Research Center, warned that all provinces in Iran are facing this danger and stated, "We only have five to ten years to save our cities and villages from this threat." Masoumeh Amigh-Pey, head of the Precise Leveling and Radar Interferometry Department of the Iranian Mapping Organization, also mentioned in June of this year that a comprehensive database of land subsidence has been prepared, indicating that the range of land subsidence has penetrated 16 major cities in Iran, with 800 cities also located within the land subsidence area. According to some critical experts, incorrect policies, lack of proper planning, and mismanagement by the Islamic Republic in the water sector are significant factors contributing to land subsidence and environmental crises in Iran. Nasser Karami, an expert, previously told Voice of America that due to the increase in subsidence in Iran, "the living space in Iran is getting smaller and smaller."