The Largest Watershed Management Structure Opened in the East of Iran

On the sixth day of the ceremony celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, The largest water-storage facility in the east of the country was opened in the village of Arq and Bein-abad in the city of Khosf, with the presence of the head of FRWO, South Khorasan officials.

According to IRNA, Khalil Aghayee, Deputy Minister and Head of Forests, Range and Watershed Management Organization (FRWO) expressing his satisfaction over the high volume of rainfall this year, and the need to manage the runoff for conserving the rangelands, said that one billion cubic meters of flood water) is expected to be harvested in the country through watershed management operations.

Head of FRWO said in the opening ceremony of the country's largest water structure in city of Khosf, that the Supreme Leader’s special attention to the IWM issue since 2015, paved the way for further support by government and the Parliament to watershed management operations.

He said that this year, $ 200 million has been allocated to the IWM projects from the National Development Fund, that 50% of which has been received so far.

The Deputy Minister of Agriculture jahad said the average physical progress of the large-scale watershed projects in the country is more than 90 percent and stated that South Khorasan is among the first four provinces in the country that are pioneering this year's watershed activities.

In connection with runoff control, he said according to the Sixth Development Plan, watershed management operations should be carried out in 10 million hectares (2 million hectares annually) in the country.

Aghayee also added: considering that the implementation of one hectare of IWM projects will cost 10 million RLs, then we need 20 thousand millionn RLs annually to realize the obligations under the Sixth Development Plan.