BBC News Azerbaijan – July 24, 2025
The northern part of Lake Urmia could completely evaporate within a week.
This warning was issued by Hojjat Jabbari, the head of the Environmental Protection Department of West Azerbaijan Province.
He stated that if current water management practices, as well as the policies of the Ministries of Agriculture and Energy, continue, the restoration of the lake will not be possible.
Saeed Issapour, a member of the National Task Force for Saving Lake Urmia, criticized Jabbari’s statements, saying, “Instead of offering solutions, some people exaggerate the problems and cause baseless concerns.”
This task force was established around 15 years ago as the Lake Urmia Restoration Center, but despite dozens of projects, it has failed to produce lasting results.
After a meeting of the task force, West Azerbaijan Governor Reza Rahmani declared that “Lake Urmia will definitely be restored.” Local news agencies reported that in his meeting with Iranian President Pezeshkian’s First Vice President, Mohammadreza Aref, discussions were held on “accelerating restoration programs and allocating the necessary funding.”
Lake Urmia was once considered the second-largest saltwater lake in the world, but for more than 20 years, the construction of dams on all rivers feeding the lake has led to its desiccation.
In past years, protests over the lake's condition were violently dispersed by police; in Urmia and Tabriz, numerous cultural activists were arrested and sentenced to prison for opposing the state’s policies toward the lake.
Urmiya gölü "bir həftəyə tam buxarlana bilər"