Iranian authorities have imposed a temporary ban on public access to most forested areas, a local media outlet reported Wednesday, as the country struggled to extinguish a fire in a UNESCO World Heritage-listed site.
However, it reignited on November 15, fuelled by strong winds and an unusually severe drought, according to Iranian media.
“We have notified the provinces to ban entry into forest areas outside protected zones and parks before the autumn rains occur in order to prevent similar incidents from occurring,” Majid Zakariaei, commander of the unit responsible for forest protection, told the Mehr news agency.
Iran has requested foreign assistance to combat the fire ravaging the Hyrcanian forests which stretch 1,000 kilometres (600 miles) along the shores of the Caspian Sea and the northern slopes of the Alborz mountains into Azerbaijan.
The ancient forest is home to the endangered Persian leopard as well as brown bears and other large predators and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2019.
The fire comes with the country facing one of its most severe droughts since records began six decades ago.
The blaze was largely contained by Tuesday, but operations are continuing to fully extinguish it, Iranian media reported.
Authorities have not released information on the extent of the damage or the area burned.
The woodlands contain “a large number of rare and endemic tree species” and are home to “many relict and endangered plant species”, UNESCO has said of the Hyrcanian forest.
It is especially important due to its age of between 25 and 50 million years, and its biodiversity, with more than 3,200 plant species.
According to the Tasnim news agency, the fire, was reportedly started by hunters in the rocky area of Elit in Mazandaran province, located in northern Iran.
Source: AFP
