Air pollution in Tehran; Can precipitation heal this situation?

Air pollution has taken the breath of Tehran. The main concern is what the long-term tolerance of pollutants will do to our bodies. Air pollution is more extreme in the cold seasons. Because the major source of pollution is "suspended particles". Although recently, evidence of increasing sulphur dioxide concentration has added to this pollution. Meanwhile, in the summer, the city of Tehran has been struggling with ozone pollution for a couple of years in addition to summer dust ( the pollution that is not so visible and tangible). Now, considering noise, waste, water and soil pollution, we have to think about the challenges in the metropolis of Tehran.

Those people who come from uncontaminated villages or citifies to metropolises for a short time, experience watery and red eyes or shortness of breath. They assume that their body is not adapted to pollution. As if the body is adapted gradually to live in this unfavourable condition. However, this gradual adaptability can eventually disrupt physical and mental health. 

The fact that humans can adapt to anything, does not mean that these situations are desirable. In other words, we fall into the error of gradual adaptation and accept conditions that are destructive to our life in the long run. Although adapting to an unfavourable environment in the short term allows life to continue, it causes death in the long term.

The gradual adaptation of the human body to air pollution is a clear example of a person's adaptability to environmental pollution. This adaptation will not cause an immediate reaction (redness and watery eyes) in polluted air, However, it will increase chronic illnesses such as heart and respiratory diseases is one of the long-term results of this adaptation.

Heavy Precipitation in a week

This winter, heavy precipitation temporarily freed Tehran from air pollution. In addition to this, the rains were probably able to temporarily overcome the volume reduction of reservoirs of dams crisis in the capital. However, "climate and air" as two vital elements of life are in serious trouble in the metropolis of Tehran. It seems that precipitation is no longer an effective competitor to air pollution and the water crisis. In fact, as long as the development policies continue to focus on the attraction of the population in the metropolis of Tehran, the existing dams with the current trend of consumption will not meet the needs of this growing population. And, the minimal actions taken by responsible agencies to manage air pollution will increase the pollution load. Due to a large number of cars and numerous sources of combustion, it will not be able to cope with the climatic coordinates of Tehran.

The development plans

Failure to pay attention to the root cause of Tehran's environmental problems has practically made it difficult to improve air quality. The main cause of Tehran's suffocation is the burden of population, industry and services beyond its ecological capacity. Ignoring general development in Tehran and other big cities of the country to adapt population capacity to assets and biological resources have created sensitive and fragile conditions in metropolises, where air pollution and lack of water resources are the most important consequences. When the first comprehensive plan of Tehran was approved in 1969, a population equivalent to 5.5 million people was considered in future. Subsequently, in other urban plans such as the Urban planning and development in Tehran (1992), Tehran urban complex plan (2003), and the comprehensive plan (2007), the projected population were ignored. Furthermore, instead of decentralization and preventing the growth of large population centres around Tehran, overloading continued in Tehran and other big cities. As a result, environmental indicators such as improving air quality and sustainable water were given the last priorities.

This is why water was transferred from Taleghan Dam, 160 kilometres away from Tehran, to supply water to this city. And, the government still trying to find new water sources from the neighbouring provinces for the growing population of "The Great Tehran"! 

What has to be considered?

Thus, the first thing that shall be considered is the appropriate capacities to develop residential, industrial, scientific and academic centres for Tehran, Isfahan, Mashhad and other big cities of Iran to attract the population. In fact, the serious environmental problems of the capital city are due to the fact that Tehran's living capacity is no longer responsive to more population and the expansion of residential and industrial settlements. And, Tehran province is unable to carry more load due to environmental limitations.

In such conditions, precipitation in cold seasons is a blessing that reduces a little of the polluted days and the tense situation of the water reserves. But still, the pace of population growth and migration are still affecting the measures of pollutants emissions from mobile and fixed sources. That is why the suffocation of the metropolises and the limitation of water resources will become a more complex and complicated problem year by year.