Iranian President Hassan Rouhani visited on Jan. 14 the province of Khuzestan and promised its residents that he would solve their numerous problems, including issues with the drinking water and pollution of the Karun River. However, the environmental activists in the province said that people were not happy with what the president said and that his words have made them even more upset.

During the past few months, the people of Khuzestan had strongly objected to the implementation of the project known as Behesht Abad, which aims to transfer water from the Karun River to the central provinces of the country.

The Behesht Abad project involves the transfer of more than 1 billion cubic meters [1.3 billion cubic yards] of water from the tributaries of the Karun River to the central provinces of Iran such as Yazd, Esfahan and Kerman. The project, which would stop the flow of Karun into the Persian Gulf, has been faced with strong opposition from the people and environmental activists of Khuzestan province.  

During his trip to Khuzestan, Rouhani responded to people’s demand for the halting of the Behesht Abad project. He announced his administration's decision that the water from the tributaries of the Karun River would be used only for the purpose of providing drinking water. He also added that previous projects would be halted.