Part One
Censored newspapers occasionally publish headlines to, as they claim, raise awareness and encourage public participation in protecting the environment. Officials in this field are also active, asserting that the capitalist system governing their corrupt Islamic regime and its repressive policies play no role in water shortages, worsening droughts, desertification, drying up rivers and lakes, soil erosion, land subsidence, deforestation for timber sales and real estate development, impoverishing the majority of citizens, and similar issues.
For example, media outlets have recently quoted officials stating that reservoirs behind dams are empty due to excessive water consumption by the public and natural drought conditions. They have urged people to reduce their water usage. Moreover, they have taken it a step further by threatening fines and water cuts for what they call “high-consumption users.” However, the highest consumers of water are government officials, wealthy elites, and capitalists. They extensively use surface and groundwater resources for military and non-military industries, cryptocurrency mining, and water-intensive agriculture, such as cultivating tomatoes and watermelons.
Experts acknowledge the role of low rainfall and, in general, natural factors and citizen behavior in environmental degradation and droughts in Iran. However, through scientific reasoning, they primarily hold the Islamic Republic and its corrupt elites responsible for the destruction of the environment.
The ruling Islamic government in Iran operates under a capitalist system. In conventional bourgeois states, capitalists seek profit while being compelled by society to adhere to environmental regulations. However, in underdeveloped and dependent countries, they not only seek profit but also exploit cheap labor to achieve super-profits. In these regions, environmental protection holds no value for them. Similarly, in Iran, state-affiliated, semi-state, and private capitalists extract enormous profits from the labor force. While they outwardly claim commitment to environmental preservation, drafting policies and hiring personnel for this purpose, in reality, they exploit and devastate nature. Naturally, they ensure that their own living environments remain free from pollution. For instance, they rarely visit working-class areas, urban outskirts, or low-income neighborhoods where old, polluting vehicles are prevalent, and polluting industries are concentrated.
Approximately 90% of the Islamic Republic’s revenue comes from oil and petrochemical sales, yet the regions producing these resources have turned into hazardous environments for workers and the impoverished local population. Take Asaluyeh, for example. Under what conditions do workers labor in this area, which has become Iran’s energy hub?
Oil and petrochemical activities in areas like Asaluyeh have caused severe environmental harm. Air, water, and soil pollution are among the major consequences. The release of greenhouse gases and suspended particles from industrial operations has significantly deteriorated air quality, leading to respiratory illnesses among workers and residents and harming local flora and fauna. Oil spills and chemical leaks into the sea and groundwater sources have posed a severe threat to marine life and aquatic ecosystems. The expansion of oil and industrial facilities has destroyed natural habitats and reduced biodiversity in the region. Moreover, industrial activities and greenhouse gas emissions have contributed to climate change. The excessive water consumption by the oil and petrochemical industries has placed immense pressure on the region’s limited water resources. Pollution from oil and chemicals is a serious threat to marine life in the Persian Gulf.
What has been mentioned here is just the tip of the iceberg. Through unscientific river course alterations, unregulated dam construction, maintaining widespread poverty, and allowing outdated vehicles on the roads, the regime and its military arm, the IRGC, have inflicted immense damage on citizens’ living environments.
In response to the regime’s actions, widespread movements have emerged and continue to fight for environmental protection. In the second part of this discussion, we will examine the broader role of the regime and capitalists in ecological destruction and the extensive struggles against them.