Lake Urmia's water level has reached its lowest measurable point, with officials warning that any further decline would render water levels "undeclared" as they fall below recordable minimums, local Aftab News reported on August 5.

Lake Urmia, nestled between Iran's East and West Azerbaijan provinces, is a testament to the Middle East's vanishing natural wonders. Once the region's largest lake and still Earth's sixth-largest saltwater body, this endorheic basin spans an impressive 6,000 square kilometres, stretching 140 kilometres long and 70 kilometres wide, with depths reaching 20 metres in its deepest points—dimensions that are now a direct threat to those living close to the salt lake. Urmia follows other central Asian bodies of water, including the Aral Sea in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, which suffered the same fate years earlier due to Soviet-era government rerouting water to cotton farms. 

Dr Ahmadreza Lahijanzadeh, Deputy for Marine Environment and Wetlands at Iran's Environmental Protection Organisation, said the lake's water level reached 1,269.74 metres on August 2, with an area of 581 square kilometres and a water volume of 500mn cubic metres.

This represents a dramatic decline from August 2, 2024, when the lake's volume was 2bn cubic metres.

"Unfortunately, the water level has now reached its lowest point, and if it goes lower, no figure will be announced because this is the minimum possible statistic," Lahijanzadeh said during a press conference on August 5.

He warned that field conditions would worsen due to rising air temperatures and evaporation, making the provincial director general's prediction of complete drying by the end of summer "completely accurate."

The official attributed the crisis partly to drought during the 2024-2025 water year, noting that some cities across Iran are struggling to provide drinking water.

Studies conducted between 2013 and 2016 predicted the complete drying of the lake and its consequences, including migration, disease, dust storms, and livelihood destruction, according to Lahijanzadeh.

"All the government's concern is that this does not happen, because if we reach this point, unimaginable damage will be inflicted on the country," he said.

The government held a meeting on August 4 regarding special funding allocation for Lake Urmia projects, with plans for the current water year aimed at preventing complete drying of the lake.

Lake Urmia, once one of the world's largest salt lakes, has been shrinking for decades due to drought, dam construction, and agricultural water use.

Earlier in December, Japan pledged JPY690mn ($4.6mn) to revive Lake Urmia and improve wetland management across Iran, officials announced at a signing ceremony with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), IntelliNews previously reported.