EghtesadOnline: Lack of sustainable and long-term planning to combat water shortage can lead to serious consequences, the UNICEF representative to Iran said.

EghtesadOnline: Despite the visible reduction in per capita water consumption in southern Bushehr Province, the region is still struggling with severe water shortages, head of water quality department in Bushehr Water and Wastewater Company said.

EghtesadOnline: Underground water resources meet close to 57% of the domestic water demand from households, farming and industries. The balance (43%) comes from renewable resources.

EghtesadOnline: Dwindling underground water resources have forced 20 million people from small towns and villages to the countryside in the last two decades, deputy head of the Underground Water Resources Protection Unit of Iran Water Resource Management said.

EghtesadOnline: Extraction from renewable water resources in Khorasan Razavi Province has reached petrifying levels, the head of provincial Water Company said.

EghtesadOnline: Rapidly declining water resources has impelled the government to increase the number of plains from which water withdrawal is banned from 15 in 1968 to 405 now -- up 2,600%.

EghtesadOnline: Water-intensive lifestyle, lack of long-term plans to efficiently use the limited water resources , inadequate investment to develop water infrastructure and sacrificing national interest at the altar of personal gain are among visible reasons why pleas, plans and proposals to use less water across all sectors have not produced the desired results.

EghtesadOnline: Energy Minister Reza Ardakanian announced signing 30 deals on water treatment projects to tackle dwindling water resources .