The deputy head of the marine section of the Environment Department says the destruction of marine areas for construction development is on the rise in the northern and southern coastal regions of the country.
Parvin Farshchi said 14 hectares in Kish, 33 hectares in Qeshm and 300 hectares in Asaluyeh waters have been taken over for so called “land recovery”, in which areas with low water depth are dried out and the land is used for housing, shipping or tourism projects.
Farshchi said taking over tidal areas is against the law, and the ministry of agriculture as well as the forestry department are responsible for protecting these areas.
Farshchi added that the water levels of the Caspian Sea have fallen by an average of 80 centimetres, and private companies are using breakwaters and isolating areas of water for transformation into construction projects.
Private docks, unregulated breakwaters and the growing number of restaurants along the coast have become sources of serious harm to the Caspian Sea environment.
There is a ban on any form of construction within 60 kilometres of the coastline, but reports indicate that the law is not being properly enforced.
