As the calendar inched toward mid-December, rain finally fell on Iran's capital of Tehran. Yet that may not be enough to prevent an evacuation amid fears that water will run out in a metropolitan area of approximately 15 million people.

What's happening?

Before rain fell Dec. 10, President Masoud Pezeshkian warned that Tehran residents may "have to evacuate" as Iran experiences its sixth consecutive year of drought.

Kaveh Madani, director of the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health, called the intensity of the drought "unprecedented in modern times," as reported by CNN. 

Some neighborhoods have lost water service for hours on end, with key water reservoir Latyan Dam less than 10% full, according to the Associated Press.   

Why is Iran's water crisis important?

The reasons behind Iran's water crisis are multifold. 

As CNN and the AP detailed, years of overextraction — policies enacted after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, during which then-Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini promised free water for everyone — and the cultivation of water-intensive crops have all played significant roles. More than 90% of Iran's water goes toward agriculture.  

To some degree, sanctions tied to the regime's nuclear and missile programs, human-rights abuses, and support for terrorism have also played a role, as Iranian-American and senior fellow at The Washington Institute Holly Dagres noted in a piece detailing how many Iranians see the water crisis as stemming from the regime's "systemic mismanagement and corruption."

A changing climate fueled by pollution from coal, oil, and gas is also influencing weather patterns in the region. While "all extreme events have multiple causes," per the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, warmer global temperatures are supercharging them, making them more powerful and destructive.

What's being done about Iran's water crisis?

While rain fell on Tehran after Pezeshkian's warning in November, Iran Meteorological Organization office official Ahad Vazifeh said he expects a shortage "even if rain in the winter and spring will be normal," according to the AP. 

The government has tried "cloud seeding" to increase rainfall. While cloud seeding has been blamed for flooding in multiple regions, scientists have regularly debunked that theory, and a recent study indicates that cloud seeding may only have a limited effect on rainfall. 

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