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IRAN POLLUTION REPORT
US DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
MAY 5, 2002
May 2002
Iran: Environmental Issues
Introduction
Iran is faced with a litany of environmental problems, many of which the country
is only beginning to tackle as the problems reach a crisis point. Although Iran
established a Department of Environment in 1971, long-term environmental
concerns often have been subjugated to shorter-term industrial production and
political goals. Iranian environmental protection efforts in the 1970s focused
on conservation, with the establishment of a number of national parks, national
monuments, and wildlife refuges throughout the country.
Iran maintained this focus after the Islamic Revolution, enshrining
environmental protection in the Constitution. Article 50 of the Constitution
reads: "In the Islamic Republic of Iran protection of the environment, in which
present and future generations should enjoy a transcendent social life, is
regarded as a public duty. Therefore, economic and any other activity, which
results in pollution or irremediable destruction of the environment is
prohibited." However, 8 years of war with Iraq, international political
isolation, and economic sanctions kept environmental goals on the back-burner in
Iran, and conservation measures predominated in Iran's environmental policies.
Iran's failure to move beyond conservation policies towards a more sustainable
development has manifested itself in a range of problems today. In addition to
deforestation and desertification issues across much of Iran's arid territory,
overfishing in lakes and rivers has caused a drop in fishing levels; industrial
and urban waste water runoff has contaminated a number of rivers and coastal
waters and threatened drinking water supplies; wetlands and reservoirs are
increasingly being destroyed under the pretext of creating industrial and
agricultural lands; and oil and chemical spills in the Persian Gulf and Caspian
Sea continue to pollute the seas and harm aquatic life. The Caspian Sea region
is faced with a number of environmental problems in the international rush to
develop the Caspian's oil and gas.
Air Pollution
The biggest environmental problem Iran currently faces is air pollution,
especially in the capital city of Tehran, but also in regional cities like
Tabriz. About 1.5 million tons of pollutants are produced in Tehran annually,
with carbon monoxide from car exhaust making up a large percentage of these
pollutants. Most of Tehran's nearly 2 million cars are over 20 years old, with
poor fuel efficiency and lacking catalytic converters and the ability to use
lead-free gasoline. Many of these cars are domestically produced Paykans,
manufactured by the Iran Khodro company. Leaky engines and cars spewing black
smoke are a familiar sight contributing to the city's hazardous air pollution,
as well as its infamous traffic snarls. In January 2002, President Khatami
declared that "from now on, all the Iranian-made cars will be provided with
favourable standards for fuel consumption." Khatami also pledged to move Iran
towards lead-free gasoline in the near future.
Tehran's air pollution is made even worse by the city's geographic position. The
city is hemmed in by the Alborz Mountains to the north, causing the increasing
volume of pollutants to become trapped, hovering over Tehran when the wind is
not strong enough to blow the pollution away. Tehran's high altitude, ranging
between 3,300 and 5,000 feet, also makes fuel combustion inefficient, adding to
the pollution problem. Finally, the city's "lungs" (i.e., its orchards,
especially in northern Tehran) have largely been destroyed over the past 10-20
years by rampant development pressures. The combination of these natural and
man-made factors is that Tehran is one of the most polluted cities in the world,
ranking with Mexico City, Beijing, Cairo, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, Jakarta, and
Bangkok.
The city's air pollution recently reached a crisis stage in December 1999, when
high levels of carbon monoxide and other pollutants engulfed the capital for
several weeks. With a cloud of smog hovering over Tehran, Iranian authorities
shut down elementary schools and closed off the city center to motorists for
several days. Iranian-state radio urged Tehran's residents to stay indoors, and
many who did venture outdoors resorted to wearing face masks and breathing
through wads of cloth. The polluted air was blamed for causing several deaths,
as well as causing problems for people with asthma, heart, and skin conditions.
Overall, approximately 4,000-5,000 Tehran residents are estimated to die every
year from air pollution.
In response to record levels of air pollution (in Tehran especially, but also in
other urban areas), Iranian authorities announced a number of short- and
long-term steps. In the short-run, officials announced a plan to limit private
cars in Tehran--vehicles with odd and even license plate numbers will only be
allowed into Tehran on alternate days. However, a previous similar plan, whereby
private cars were restricted entry into the city on weekdays using special
passes, proved ineffective in reducing pollution levels. Additionally, Iran
declared January 19th to be "National Clean Air Day," urging the country's
residents not to use their cars on that day unless absolutely necessary.
According to the Green Party of Iran, the National Clean Air Day went largely
unnoticed in Iran. The Green Party of Iran, which was recently founded in
response to the country's deteriorating environmental conditions, said that most
car owners in Iran ignored the call to switch off their engines for 3 minutes.
Officials estimate that cars account for 75%-80% of Tehran's pollution.
Recognizing that the answer to the country's air pollution problems requires
more than just simple gestures, Tehran's former mayor Morteza Alviri announced
in December 1999 that the city would launch a 15-year, $2.2-billion project to
fight air pollution. The plan, which includes steps to rehabilitate public
transport and phase out old automobiles, is a compromise plan worked out by the
World Bank, Japanese experts, and Iranian environmentalists. Details of the
plan, which was approved by the Iranian cabinet, have not been released, but
officials have stated that air pollution in Tehran will decrease by 16% with the
plan's implementation. In March 2002, Iran's Department of the Environment and
Japan's International Cooperation Agency (JAICA) agreed to cooperate in reducing
Tehran's pollution levels. In the meantime, however, Iranians will continue to
resort to face masks to protect themselves from air pollution.
In 2001, Iran launched a 10-year program to reduce air pollution by phasing out
old motor vehicles and replacing them with newer, more fuel efficient, and
cleaner ones. In addition, a law to cut industrial pollution came into effect,
calling for a mix of tax incentives and fines to achieve compliance. In January
2002, Iran's Department of the Environment director, Ma'sumeh Ebtekar, stated
that diesel-fueled vehicles were responsible for a disproportionate share of
Iran's air pollution, and that starting March 21, 2002, they would be issued
license plate numbers only if they had engines operating on compressed natural
gas. In May 2002, the Iranian Transport Association stated warned that unless
pollution controls were improved on Iranian trucks, they would be denied entry
to the European Union beginning in 2003.
Energy Consumption
A major factor behind the suffocating air pollution in Tehran and other Iranian
cities is the dramatic rise in the country's energy consumption. From 1980-1998,
Iran's total energy consumption ramped up from 1.6 quadrillion Btu (quads) in
1980 to 4.7 quads in 2000 -- nearly a three-fold increase. Much of this energy
is accounted for by gasoline consumption: Tehran's 2 million cars alone use 7
million liters (1.85 million gallons) of gasoline daily. With an abundance of
oil in Iran, petroleum products are subsidized, and their cheap cost deprives
producers of incentives to make them more fuel-efficient. In May 2002, Iran's
deputy oil minister estimated that the government subsidizes gasoline
consumption at a cost of several billion dollars per year
Overall, natural gas makes up about 50% of the energy consumed in Iran, with oil
(48%) making up much of the rest and coal accounting for only 1%. Per capita
energy consumption in 2000 was 73.8 million Btu, which is only one-fifth of the
U.S. level of 351.1 million Btu, but is still on the increase. Iran's energy
intensity--energy consumption per GDP dollar--at 39,265 Btu/$1995 remains above
the level of most Western countries, but below many countries in the former
Soviet Union and the Middle East. By way of comparison, US energy intensity in
2000, for instance, was 10,919 Btu/$1995.
Carbon Emissions
Iran's energy-related carbon emissions have been on a steady climb for two
decades. Since 1980, carbon emissions in Iran have risen by 240%, from 33.1
million metric tons emitted in 1980 to 80.8 million metric tons emitted in 2000.
With the growth in Iran's population has come an increasing number of cars, and
automobile exhaust has contributed greatly to the fact that Iran now accounts
for 1.3% of the world's total carbon emissions.
Iran's per capita carbon emissions are relatively low--at 1.3 metric tons of
carbon emitted per person in 2000, Iran is significantly lower than
corresponding figure for the United States (5.6) and other industrialized
countries. This stems in part from the fact that Iran consumes very little
carbon-intensive coal. However, the widespread use of leaded gasoline and the
preponderance of cars lacking catalytic converters in Iran accounts for
significant levels of carbon monoxide in urban areas. Although authorities have
not released pollution statistics for 1999, in 1998, when several thousand
schools were shut down, the carbon monoxide pollution in Tehran was more than
six times the acceptable level set by the World Health Organization. Iran
currently is converting from leaded to unleaded gasoline.
The country's carbon emissions likely will continue to rise until the roots of
the problem are addressed. The Green Party of Iran asserts that a shortage of
public transport, a rapidly increasing population, and the exorbitant price of
new, cleaner cars are the reasons why large numbers of cars lacking
pollution-abatement technology remain on the road, despite the health problems
they cause. The Green Party argues that Iran needs to support several policy
initiatives, including subsidizing the purchase of new, unleaded cars, enforcing
emission controls from old cars (Iran is a non-Annex I country under the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, nor is it a signatory to the
Kyoto Protocol; therefore, it is not bound to reduce its carbon emissions under
the convention), providing more public transportation facilities in line with
population growth in Tehran, and increasing green spaces in the city.
Alternative Energy Sources
Iran's renewable energy consumption is low. With 9% of the world's oil reserves
and 15% of its natural gas reserves (80% of which have not been developed), Iran
has an abundant supply of fossil fuel resources, which tends to discourage the
pursuit of alternative, renewable energy sources. Iran's 1997 renewable energy
consumption--including hydropower, solar, wind, tide, geothermal, solid biomass
and animal products, biomass gas and liquids, and industrial and municipal
wastes--totaled 106 trillion Btu, a 6% increase over the previous year.
In an attempt to diversify its energy mix from a primarily oil-based economy,
Iran is increasing its hydroelectric capacity. Several hydropower plants are
currently in operation, and several more are under construction. In addition,
Iran would like to increase its nuclear power usage in order eventually to meet
20% of the country's electricity demand, but international concerns about Iran's
use of nuclear power for purposes other than electricity generation have limited
the country's nuclear capacity.
Iran in the 21st Century
Rapid population growth over the past 20 years has been a significant factor
contributing to Iran's environmental problems, and continued high population
growth, combined with continued reliance on fossil fuels and increased car
usage, likely will exacerbate these problems. The recent pollution crisis in
Iran may serve as a significant catalyst for change, however, forcing Iran into
action to protect the health of its citizens.
Iran will need to confront its environmental problems head-on if it is to
prevent further pollution crises. In addition to phasing out leaded gasoline and
requiring catalytic converters on automobiles, Iran may need to take a more
long-term approach towards environmental protection in order to safeguard the
health of Iran's cities and citizens. By further developing its gas fields, Iran
can use more clean-burning natural gas rather than oil for its energy needs.
Reducing Iran's reliance on oil and "petrodollars" will not only help to
decrease pollution, but will also help Iran diversify its economy.
Although several of these initiatives will be difficult to achieve if Iran's
diplomatic isolation continues, the victory of reform-minded candidates in
recent Iranian parliamentary elections eventually may lead to a warming of
relations between Iran and the United States and other countries. Ironically,
the pollution problem in Tehran may prove to be beneficial to Iran's environment
in the long-run--the health crisis spotlighted the need to act to protect Iran's
environment and helped foster support for green groups, while encouraging more
public participation in environmental affairs.
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