December 23, 2016
The Energy Ministry will ask the Majlis for authority to fine households using a lot of water.
This is the second time the proposal has been sent to the Majlis. It died in February with no action taken when the Majlis adjourned for the elections.
Hamid-Reza Janbaz, an advisor to Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian and managing director of the Tehran Water and Wastewater Company, said average water usage per household should be around 18 cubic meters (4,800 gallons) per month. Under the proposal, households whose consumption exceeds 40 cubic meters (10,600 gallons) will be fined to discourage use.
In the US, the average family of four uses 12,000 gallons a month.
“Heavy consumers will be notified two or three times via mail. If they do not reduce their water consumption, their water supply will be cut off,” Janbaz said. He didn’t explain why the company wanted to both fine the household and cut off the water supply.
He announced that the plan is expected to go into effect by the end of the current Iranian year.
Iran’s rainfall is a third of the global average, and the country has now suffered 16 straight years of drought.
About 90 percent of the country’s water resources are used in the agricultural sector. In most countries, the vast majority of water is devoted to agriculture. In the United States, it is about 80 percent.
In the US, only about 6 percent of water is used in homes for cooking, drinking, washing, showering and, mainly, toilet flushing. In Iran, a little less is used in homes. So, reducing home consumption of water cannot solve a drought-induced problem.
