Warning Against Continued Use of Benzene in Iran's Produced Gasoline

Iranian officials state that the level of benzene in the air of cities was about 120 times the permissible limit in 2010 due to the use of this toxic substance in the country's gasoline production, which has now decreased to 40 times less. Benzene, as a chemical substance, is primarily used in the production of petrochemical products such as nylon and rubber, but some countries widely use this hazardous material as an octane booster in gasoline production. Regarding the dangers posed by this toxic substance, especially in cancer-related diseases, the World Health Organization reported in 2010 that inhaling this substance through the air poses 'very serious risks.' The International Agency for Research on Cancer has placed this toxic substance at the top of its list of carcinogenic chemicals. Despite these warnings, Reuters reported on Wednesday, March 9, that this semi-dependent international organization of the World Health Organization did not consider all aspects of the dangers posed by benzene in its research and ignored a three-year-old warning from a researcher about the deficiencies in its report. This indicates that the dangers of benzene are much greater than what international research has warned. Reuters states that 'Million Kapustin,' a chemical engineer in the United States, warned the International Agency for Research on Cancer in a 2015 notice about deficiencies in the report published by this international organization, stating that the extent of the dangers of benzene was not accurately and comprehensively described in the report. Reuters notes that the International Agency for Research on Cancer has acknowledged the shortcomings of its research but has stated that it has no plans for further research. Nevertheless, Mr. Kapustin still insists on compelling this international organization to conduct broader research, as he claims the dangers of this substance are much greater than what research indicates. The use of benzene in Iran, especially during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's second presidential term when the U.S. sanctioned gasoline exports to Iran and the Islamic Republic utilized petrochemical complexes to compensate for gasoline shortages, has raised many concerns. Iranian officials still claim that they use this substance in gasoline production, but its share of total gasoline is about one percent, which is in accordance with international standards. However, based on European and American standards, a one percent concentration of benzene in gasoline is accepted as the maximum permissible limit, not a standard. According to IRNA news agency, Dr. Saeed Motazedi, the Deputy of Human Environment at the Environmental Protection Organization, stated earlier this year that the previous government had started producing and distributing petrochemical gasoline since 2010, of which 50 percent was benzene, the main source of air pollution; studies conducted in Tehran show that the level of benzene in the capital's air is over 300 parts per billion, with some areas exceeding one thousand parts per billion. He previously stated in 2015 during an interview with Mehr News Agency that in 2010, the concentration of benzene in city air was 600 times the permissible limit, which has now decreased to forty times less. Meanwhile, ISNA news agency reported on March 5, citing Shina Ansari, the Director General of Comprehensive Monitoring at the Environmental Protection Organization, that the benzene content in the distributed gasoline in the country was at most 1.54 percent and on average about 0.95 percent. Iran also uses the octane booster 'MTBE' in gasoline production, which is also accompanied by serious warnings from international organizations. Iran currently adds over 1.4 million liters of this substance to its produced gasoline daily, meaning the concentration of this substance in domestically produced gasoline is over 2 percent.