Environmentalist: Anzali Wetland in northern Iran likely to dry up soon

An Iranian environment activist has warned the Anzali Wetland in the north of the country will reduce to isolated, shallow ponds in five years’ time.

The Tehran-based Etemaad Daily quoted Mohammad Kohansal as saying the lagoon is facing almost every threat or damage mentioned for wetlands in reference books.

“One can say the wetland’s days are numbered and a sad fate looms large for this international lagoon,” he says.

“As Lake Urmia is moribund, the Anzali wetland is likely to dry up, leaving behind only images of it in photo albums,” says the environmentalist.

The Anzali Lagoon is located in the Caspian Sea near Bandar-e Anzali, in the northern Iranian province of Gilan.

Reports say the water of the Caspian Sea has reached its lowest level in the last 30 years.

Ali Salaqjeh, the head of Iran’s Department of the Environment has recently said water inflows, especially the one through the Volga River, into the Caspian Sea have been blocked by the neighboring countries.

The drop in rainfall has also been attributed to the environmental crisis.

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