TEHRAN, 18 Nov. - (ANA) - At 4:30 a.m., Ali checks his kitchen tap before getting ready for work—a ritual he never needed until this year. The water pressure is so low it barely trickles, not enough to wash his face properly.

 

"My job is physical and difficult," says the 51-year-old janitor who works for a company in north Tehran. "I used to wake up early to shower, so I wouldn't have an unpleasant odour. But these days, that's practically impossible. Often, during the hours I'm home, the water is either cut off or the pressure is too low to take a shower."

 

Ali takes public transport to work. "On days I go without showering, I can feel how people react to me. It's humiliating," he says. His supervisor has warned him about body odour.

 

Ali's daily struggle reflects a crisis gripping Iran's capital, home to 9 million people. Tehran has recorded no precipitation by mid-November, compared to the typical 50–60 millimetres expected by this time, according to the Water Research Institute affiliated with Iran's Ministry of Energy.

 

Water reserves behind Tehran's supply dams have reached critical lows. The Latian Dam, with a capacity of 76 million cubic meters, currently holds only 7 million cubic meters—the lowest level in 6 decades of operation. Amir Kabir Dam stores just 14 million cubic meters, 8% of its capacity.

 

President Masoud Pezeshkian warned in early November that continued rainfall shortages could force water rationing in Tehran. If the crisis persists long-term, the government might have to "evacuate the 9-million-person city," he said.

 

The government currently reduces water pressure, especially at night, and transfers water from surrounding areas. Tehran is experiencing severe land subsidence at three times the global average, indicating groundwater depletion. The government is also exploring radical options, such as cloud seeding. 

 

For residents like Zahra, 38, a mother of two living on the fourth floor of a five-story building, the declining pressure has become unmanageable. "The water pressure has been low for months, and we were managing. But in the last few weeks, it's gotten much worse."

 

Friends suggest installing rooftop water tanks and pumps, but Zahra and five other families rent their flats. "The cost is high and is the landlord's responsibility. The owner won't pay for it, and now we're in trouble."

 

 

 

 

Iran's water crisis extends far beyond Tehran. The country has entered its sixth consecutive year of drought, with total national rainfall of only 152 millimetres in the last water year—40% below the 57-year average.

 

The National Centre for Climate and Drought Crisis Management announced Iran will face "very severe drought" this year, warning that autumn 2025 will be the "worst autumn in the last 57 years for Iran and the Middle East."

 

Even Gilan, one of Iran's wettest provinces, shows the crisis's reach. Faramarz, 71, a rice farmer from a coastal town in northwest Gilan, watched his harvest suffer. "The most vital condition for a good harvest is continuous, reliable access to a huge volume of water throughout the growing season. This year, the low rainfall meant we didn't have a good crop."

 

Gilan received 183.7 millimetres of rainfall this summer, 29 millimetres below the long-term average. "The main problem is that when we don't have good rain this autumn, it means our situation won't be any different next summer either," Faramarz said.

 

While climate change drives the drought, experts debate whether poor water management has worsened the crisis. Soroush Modabberi, former director at Iran's Department of Environment, believes Iran suffers from "water management poverty."

 

"In Iran, we could easily import wheat from abroad, yet we insist on being self-sufficient in wheat. The same goes for watermelon production," he told Eco Iran, referring to water-intensive crops.

 

Agriculture and industry consume the vast majority of Iran's water resources, leading many citizens to view personal conservation as pointless. However, experts say this doesn't apply to Tehran, where domestic use accounts for 55% of total consumption.

 

Kaveh Madani, director of the UN University Institute for Water, Environment and Health and former deputy head of Iran's Department of Environment, takes a pessimistic view. In an Instagram video, he said too much time has been lost on preventative measures.

 

"We must either wait for the skies [to open] or ask people to conserve," Madani said. "In a situation where people are angry and dissatisfied with many issues, you cannot expect them to want to conserve."

 

The water crisis adds another layer of hardship for Iranians already facing economic sanctions, high inflation, and political tensions. For Ali, the janitor who starts work each morning unwashed, the drought has become a daily reminder of how quickly basic dignity can disappear.

 

As Iran enters what meteorologists predict will be its worst autumn in over half a century, millions like Ali, Zahra, and Faramarz confront a new reality where water scarcity shapes every aspect of daily life—from personal hygiene to crop planning to basic survival in one of the region's largest cities.  - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/18 November 2025 - - -