Confession of the Head of the Environmental Protection Organization: Air Pollution in Iran Kills 26,000 People Annually

On Tuesday, May 14, the head of the Environmental Protection Organization acknowledged at a conference in Kerman that air pollution in Iran is six times higher than the global standard, resulting in 26,000 deaths each year. According to the state news agency IRNA, Ali Salajegheh estimated the damage caused by air pollution in Iran to be equivalent to $11.3 billion annually, adding, "The average concentration of suspended particles in the atmosphere of Iran has reached about 30 micrograms per cubic centimeter, which is about two and a half times higher than the standards set by the country itself." These remarks from the deputy of Ebrahim Raisi come at a time when the air quality in most Iranian cities in May and April this year has been relatively good due to favorable weather conditions and adequate rainfall. Daryoush Golalizadeh, head of the National Center for Air and Climate Change at the Environmental Protection Organization, stated on December 4, 2023, that the main culprits of air pollution in Iranian cities are gasoline and low-quality domestic vehicles. Meanwhile, Iranian media reported last week that the Raisi government, to compensate for the gasoline shortage in the country, has contracted petrochemical plants for $2.7 billion to resume gasoline production. Experts consider gasoline produced in petrochemical plants to be the "most polluting type of gasoline." Silent marches by citizens of Arak protesting air pollution caused by mazut burning at the Shazand power plant, the impact of acid rain and factory pollution; parts of the inscriptions at the tomb of Ferdowsi have been destroyed; warnings about air pollution in several metropolises; the continuation of mazut burning in Iranian power plants; increasing statistics; 150,000 Iranians diagnosed with cancer annually; the continuation of air pollution in Iranian cities despite public protests; a "red" status declared in Tabriz; the environment sacrificed for oil; the danger of the destruction of Hoor al-Azim under the pretext of developing oil fields.