Financial Tribune - Transferring water from the Caspian Sea in the north to the drought-hit central plateau will have severe negative environmental effects, a former member of the World Water Council said.

The plan to transfer water through a 200-kilometer pipeline from Mazandaran Province to Semnan Province has been promoted as a solution to help meet growing demand in the agricultural, industrial and household sectors of the water-stressed region.

“Pumping water from Caspian Sea would eventually lead to an increase in the sea’s salinity and endanger the habitats it supports,” Abbasqoli Jahani was quoted as saying by ILNA.