Despite reassurances from the Ministry of Health, water supply experts still maintain that the case of polluted water in Tehran is not closed and needs further investigation
Last week, the head of Tehran Health and City Services announced that the capital's tap water has a high level of nitrites and must not be used for drinking, recommending bottled water instead. The Ministry of Health immediately dismissed the announcement saying tap water was perfectly safe and the problem had been identified in a number of wells and completely contained.
Later the administration announced that it had implemented a chemical method of removing nitrites from the water; therefore, Tehran Health and City Services chief announced the file on water safety issues in Tehran has been closed and there was no further cause for concern.
Now water and environment expert Majid Abbaspour has told ILNA that the quality of water in some parts of the city should still be subjected to further investigation before the file can be closed.
The report indicates that 45 to 50 percent of the city's water is provided from wells and that water must be subjected to strict and continuous monitoring to relive all concern about high levels of toxic metals and nitrites.
Abbaspour told ILNA that the first step is to ascertain that adequate nitrite removal equipment is in place at all the wells and being monitored periodically.
A lack of coordination in the city's water supply system has been cited as a major problem in maintain water safety.
