Ancient qanats in Fars to be brought back to life

Iran's Deputy Agriculture Minister Safdar Niazi said the
government has plans underway to repair qanats across the county of Eqlid
located in the southern province of Fars.

With funds allocated from the national budget and other
sources of funding, qanats across Eqlid will be rehabilitated this year, Niazi
said on Friday.

Elsewhere in his remarks, he said some 1,000 hectares of the
province’s farmlands have been equipped with modern irrigation systems so far.

Qanats are underground aqueducts first used by Persians c.
1000 BC. These structures were used to transfer water from aquifers in
highlands to the surface at lower levels by gravity.

South Khorasan, Yazd, Kerman, Isfahan and Markazi provinces
are home to the 11 qanats inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List.
Reportedly, some of them include rest areas for workers, water reservoirs and
watermills.

The traditional communal management system still in place
allows equitable and sustainable water sharing and distribution.

The qanats provide exceptional testimony to cultural
traditions and civilizations in desert areas with an arid climate.