Environment in Iran Essay ⋆ Environment Essay Examples ⋆ EssayEmpire

This Environment in Iran Essay example is published for educational and informational purposes only. If you need a custom essay or research paper on this topic, please use our writing services. EssayEmpire.com offers reliable custom essay writing services that can help you to receive high grades and impress your professors with the quality of each essay or research paper you hand in.

Formerly known as Persia, the Islamic Republic of Iran has long been the site of political struggle, especially for the control of oil, under the influence of foreign powers. In 1953, for example, after the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company was nationalized by the democratically elected government, a traditional monarchy under a shah was reinstated with support from the United States and the United Kingdom. The country received worldwide attention in 1979 by expelling the ruling shah, a strong ally of the United States, and taking over the American Embassy in Tehran. Between 1980-88, Iran carried on a war with neighboring Iraq, ultimately facing the U.S. Navy in 1987-88. Recent elections have further cemented conservative power in Iran and have produced clashes with international organizations over nuclear capabilities. In February 2006, Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization contracted with Russia to develop a joint uranium enrichment project. Two months later, the Iranian government announced that it would not yield to demands of the United Nations (UN) Security Council to halt such activities, but would begin producing nuclear fuel on an industrial scale.

Despite Iran’s collecting around $40 billion in foreign exchange oil reserves, 40 percent of the Iranian population of 68,017,800 lives in poverty. With a per capita income of $12,900, Iran is ranked 99th in world incomes. More than 11 percent of the labor force is unemployed, yet Iran is experiencing a shortage of skilled labor. Some 27 percent of females and around 11 percent of males over the age of 15 are illiterate. Almost one-third of the workforce is engaged in agriculture, chiefly at the subsistence level. Seven percent of the population lack sustained access to safe drinking water, and 16 percent lack access to improved sanitation. Even so, the country has a strong and growing middle class and a large and widespread set of opportunities in education for both men and women. The UN Development Program (UNDP) Human Development Reports rank Iran 99th of 232 countries on quality-of-life issues.

Strategically located in the Persian Gulf and bordering the Gulf of Oman and the Caspian Sea, Iran has a coastline of 1,513 miles (2,440 kilometers). Iran shares land borders with Afghanistan, Armenia, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, and Turkmenistan as well as Azerbaijan and the Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave.

The terrain varies from rugged mountains to a high, central basin with deserts giving way to small, isolated plains along the coasts of the gulf and the Caspian Sea. Except for the area along the Caspian coast where the climate is subtropical, Iran’s climate is either arid or semiarid. In addition to large deposits of petroleum and natural gas, Iran’s most valuable natural resources are coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, and sulfur.

Iran experiences periodic droughts and floods, and sand and dust storms are common. Earthquakes are a constant threat in Iran, such as the quake registering 7.5 on the Richter scale that hit the southeastern city of Bam in December 2003. The quake caused the deaths of more than 40,000 people and displaced an additional 100,000 individuals, who are still struggling to regain equilibrium. In March 2006, three new earthquakes struck Iran, causing 66 deaths and injuring over 1,000 people.

Massive Air Polluter

The UN has identified Iran as the country with the heaviest air pollution in the world, largely because of emissions from vehicles that have not been designed to limit pollution. Between 1980 and 2002, carbon dioxide emissions rose from 3.0 to 5.3 per capita metric tons. Iran produces 1.4 percent of the world’s total of carbon dioxide emissions. At times, the air pollution level is so high that schools and government offices are forced to close. Iranian air is further polluted by refinery operations and the release of industrial effluents into the atmosphere.

Water in Iran has been contaminated by raw sewage and industrial waste products. Pollution is particularly heavy in the Karoon River, the source of almost a third of Iran’s surface water resources. According to the World Bank, health problems related to contaminated water are responsible for 90 percent of illnesses in children and are believed to have contributed to 15 percent of deaths among children under the age of five years. In 2003, the World Bank approved $20 million in loans to help the Iranian government reduce air and water pollution.

The Iranian environment has also been damaged by deforestation, overgrazing, and desertification that is common in underdeveloped countries. The Persian Gulf has been heavily polluted by oil spills.

Soil degradation has resulted from both human and climatic activity. Wetlands have disappeared following prolonged periods of drought. Like many countries in the area, Iran suffers from a shortage of potable water, particularly in rural areas. In a 2006 study conducted by scientists at Yale University, Iran was ranked 53rd of 132 countries in environmental performance, slightly above the comparable income and geographic groups. Iran’s scores were particularly low in the areas of air quality, sustainable energy, and biodiversity and habitat. Varied forms of wildlife are found in the mountains of northwest Iran, in the central plateau, and in the forests near the Caspian Sea. Of 140 endemic mammal species, 22 are endangered, as are 13 of 293 endemic bird species. Some 4.5 percent of the land area of Iran is forested, and 4.8 percent of land area is under government protection.

In order to deal with environmental pollution that has threatened human life as well as Iranian flora and fauna, the government has made pollution reduction a top priority in its current five-year plan. The authority of the Department of Environment to monitor and enforce existing environmental laws and legislation has been strengthened, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) have begun pressuring the government for additional change. Educating the public on environmental issues is seen as a key strategy in dealing with environmental problems. Iran’s participation in international agreements on the environment is limited to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, and Wetlands. The government has signed but not ratified agreements on Environmental Modification, the Law of the Sea, and Marine Life Conservation.

Bibliography:

Timothy Doyle, Environmental Movements in Minority and Majority Worlds: A Global Perspective (Rutgers University Press, 2005);
Kevin Hillstrom and Laurie Collier Hillstrom, Africa and the Middle East: A Continental Overview of Environmental Issues (ABC-CLIO, 2003).