Tehran enters sixth consecutive year of drought as dam levels drop

Tehran surrounded by snowy mountains until June still runs out of water. / bne IntelliNewsFacebook

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By bnm Tehran bureau April 14, 2026

Tehran has entered its sixth consecutive year of drought, with rainfall in the province down 35% compared to long-term averages despite a slight national improvement, Eghtesad Online reported on April 14, citing Mehr News Agency.

Alireza Jazghasemi, managing director of Tehran Province Water and Wastewater Company, said the capital's dams remained in a fragile state. Tehran sits at the top of the list of Iran's driest provinces, he said, with the Salt Lake catchment basin provinces of Tehran, Alborz, Markazi, Qazvin and Semnan all recording poor rainfall.

While Tehran's rainfall improved 10% compared to the previous water year, Jazghasemi said the precipitation had not translated into adequate runoff to replenish the capital's reservoirs. He expressed hope that snowmelt and spring rains in late April and May could help stabilise dam levels.

Jazghasemi said the company's main strategy for the current year was demand management and expanding the use of water-saving devices, alongside network repairs and meter replacements. He said public cooperation in reducing consumption was essential.

The water utility chief praised staff for maintaining uninterrupted service throughout what he called the "40-day war," with Israel and the US saying the company was among the first to respond to infrastructure damage from airstrikes.

He said some structural projects had been delayed by wartime conditions and would require redesign.

2025 saw significant drought across the West Asia region, with months of perilous conditions and dust storms across several countries and territories, as the effects of climate change continue. 

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Eighteen Iranian provinces face water stress 

To compound the stress on the national water system, 18 Iranian provinces are experiencing below-normal rainfall, with national precipitation at just 84.7% of the long-term average since the start of the current water year, ISNA reported on April 14, citing Meteorological Centre data.

Rainfall distribution across the country has been uneven. The northern Caspian coast, parts of the northwest and the Zagros mountain range have received adequate precipitation, while large areas of central, eastern and southeastern Iran remain significantly below normal levels.

In the past week alone, average national rainfall was recorded at 3.6 millimetres against a normal of 6.0 millimetres, a decline of 39.1%. While total rainfall since the start of the current season reached 42.8 millimetres compared to a long-term average of 25.8 millimetres, the apparent surplus was driven by concentrated bursts in specific areas and has not offset the cumulative national deficit.

Total precipitation since the start of the water year stood at 197.3 millimetres, 5.2% above the long-term figure of 187.3 millimetres. The report cautioned, however, that the recent drop in rainfall and its uneven distribution raised doubts about whether that marginal surplus would hold.

Iran's water crisis has been compounded by the conflict. Infrastructure damage from airstrikes, internet shutdowns affecting monitoring and coordination systems, and the diversion of government resources to wartime priorities have all added pressure to the country's already strained water management capacity. 

 

Colombia to cull dozens of Escobar's hippos in bid to halt population explosion

The origins of the problem trace back to drug lord Pablo Escobar himself, who in the 1980s smuggled four hippos into his private zoo at his Hacienda Nápoles estate in the Magdalena Medio. / unsplashFacebook

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By bnl editorial staff April 14, 2026

Colombia will begin euthanising dozens of invasive hippopotamuses in the second half of 2026 as authorities move to contain a rapidly expanding population descended from animals illegally imported by drug trafficker Pablo Escobar four decades ago, Environment Minister Irene Vélez has announced.

The country is home to around 200 hippos, concentrated in the river valleys surrounding the Magdalena, Colombia's main inland waterway. Authorities warn the population could reach 1,000 by 2035 without intervention, a trajectory that scientists say would accelerate damage to native biodiversity and compound water contamination across river systems vital to agriculture and rural livelihoods.

"We must act to reduce the hippopotamus population. These actions are essential to protect our ecosystems and our native species," Vélez said, adding that approximately 80 animals could be euthanised in the initial phase of the programme.

The cull, budgeted at COP7.2bn (around $2mn), marks the most decisive state action yet on a problem that has confounded successive Colombian governments for more than a decade. It includes complementary measures such as confinement and relocation, and comes after a September 2024 ruling by the Administrative Court of Cundinamarca ordered the environment ministry to draw up regulations aimed at eradicating the species within three months — a deadline authorities failed to meet.

The origins of the problem trace back to Escobar himself, who in the 1980s smuggled four hippos into his private zoo at his Hacienda Nápoles estate in the Magdalena Medio. After the drug lord was killed by security forces in 1993 and his ranch was ransacked, the animals escaped into the surrounding forest and began reproducing unchecked. With no natural predators in the Colombian savannah, the population expanded exponentially.

Efforts to bring the animals under control have repeatedly faltered. A government attempt to cull a single hippo in 2009 triggered a public backlash, and hunting was formally banned in 2012.

Hipppos were officially declared an invasive alien species in 2022 due to their negative impacts on ecosystems. Sterilisation and translocation programmes have moved slowly: discussions with eight potential recipient countries — including India, Mexico and South Africa — have yet to yield binding agreements, partly because genetic inbreeding within the Colombian population has reduced interest from foreign zoos and wildlife institutions.

The expansion poses escalating risks to species including river turtles and manatees, while the animals' volume of excrement is altering the chemical composition of local watercourses. "They can really pollute water resources. They're an invasive species. They don't really belong there," Joshua Hammer, a journalist who investigated the case for Smithsonian Magazine, noted in 2024. "It's rapidly changing the biome and possibly threatening these other animals."

Although hippos kill hundreds of people annually in Africa, Colombia has so far recorded no fatalities, though confrontations with fishermen have been reported along the Magdalena.

The announcement has reignited a long-running dispute between conservation scientists and animal rights advocates. The former broadly support culling as a necessary, if unpalatable, population management tool; the latter argue the crisis reflects decades of policy failure and raises unresolved questions about the ethics of lethal control.

Colombia remains the only country outside Africa with a free-roaming wild hippo population, an unlikely legacy of Escobar's private menagerie that has evolved from a local curiosity into a national ecological and fiscal liability.

South Korean industry faces crisis over critical material shortages

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By IntelliNews April 14, 2026

South Korea’s semiconductor and pharmaceutical sectors face critical supply disruptions as uncertainty surrounding the Strait of Hormuz chokepoint deepens, the Korea JoongAng Daily reports. The economic consequences of a blockade could prove more debilitating than surging energy prices, as the country relies heavily on Middle Eastern raw materials that are difficult to substitute. 

Middle East geopolitical risks are expanding from energy to industrial materials, posing a greater threat than oil spikes, according to the Korea International Trade Association (KITA). Beyond crude and naphtha, instability in the supply of helium, bromine, and ammonia directly threatens Korea’s core industries. This shift is significant because while oil price hikes affect margins, a total lack of specialised raw materials can force an immediate halt to high-tech manufacturing lines, Korea JoongAng Daily reports.

Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) and SK hynix (000660.KS) are particularly vulnerable, accounting for nearly 41% of the Kospi’s market capitalisation as of April 13. Any production shortfall at these firms would escalate into a crisis for global clients, including US Big Tech. South Korea relies on Qatar for 64.7% of its helium and on Israel for 97.5% of its bromine, according to The Elec. Global helium spot prices have already surged 50% since the conflict began, according to KITA data. According to a report by Anadolu Agency, this volatility is compounded by the fact that helium is recovered as a by-product of liquefied natural gas (LNG) processing, and Qatar accounts for approximately 30% to 38% of global helium supply.

The silent threat

The semiconductor bottleneck represents the most severe risk to the global tech ecosystem. Unlike oil, which can be sourced from strategic reserves, high-tech gases like helium and bromine have a highly concentrated production base. Helium is used as a critical coolant in wafer fabrication and is essential for cooling ASML’s extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines. The crisis intensified following drone and missile strikes on Qatar’s Ras Laffan Industrial City in early March, which damaged the world's largest helium production complex, Fusion Worldwide reports. While industry sources initially estimated six months of inventory, analysts warn that helium cannot be stored in massive quantities at fabrication sites. Working inventory at most facilities typically lasts only one week, making plants dependent on continuous inbound shipments that are now blocked by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Bromine, while not directly incorporated into chipmaking, is essential for hydrogen bromide (HBr) used in etching processes. While South Korea imports finished HBr from Japan and the US, the upstream reality is fragile because Israel and Jordan control over 70% of global liquid bromine production, according to The Elec. Japan, Korea’s primary HBr supplier, relies on Israel for 72.5% of its raw liquid bromine, creating a domino effect that ties Asian manufacturing directly to the Middle East conflict. While chipmakers possess the technology to recycle helium, such drastic measures remain an optional buffer for now, though the widening conflict has triggered a total rethink of long-term inventory management.

Government response and the June deadline

South Korean Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan dismissed fears of an imminent production halt during an appearance on the KBS program Sunday Diagnosis on April 12. He revealed that the government has secured US substitutes for helium through the end of June to prevent plant shutdowns, Chosun Biz, reports. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy has formed a dedicated task force of 40 officials to monitor supply conditions and allocated KRW869.1bn ($584.6mn) in a supplementary budget to stabilise supply chains. This funding is intended to subsidise the higher costs of sourcing materials from non-Middle Eastern suppliers, cover the import price gap for naphtha, and bolster domestic storage capacity for critical industrial gases. Kim also noted that the Cheonghae Unit destroyer Dae Joyeong is preparing to escort Korean vessels to ensure safe passage through the Red Sea and toward Saudi Arabia's Yanbu Port.

Pharmaceuticals face squeeze

The crisis has also permeated the healthcare sector due to shortages of low-density polyethylene (LDPE), a petrochemical byproduct used in medical packaging. To prevent hoarding and artificial shortages, the government announced a ban on stockpiling of medical syringes and needles effective April 14, 2026, according to Korea JoongAng Daily. Major pharmaceutical firms have implemented strict purchasing controls to ensure stability. Yuhan Corporation (000100.KS) now requires head-of-sales approval for orders exceeding 500 units of IV fluids or 200 units of acetaminophen injections. Hanmi Pharmaceutical has capped shipments of automatic dispenser wrappers based on a pharmacy's average usage over the previous three months, while HK inno.N (195940.KQ) and JW Shinyak (067290.KQ) have also implemented shipment limits for IV fluid products.

The transition of the crisis from energy prices to raw material chokepoints marks a new phase of economic fallout. While the "June buffer" provides a temporary reprieve, the structural dependence on Qatari helium and Israeli bromine remains a primary concern for the Bank of Korea and global tech markets. As the war continues, the focus remains on whether these materials can be diversified fast enough to avoid a hard landing for the Korean export engine. For now, the industrial giants of Suwon and Hwaseong remain operational, but the rising spot prices of obscure industrial gases are being watched as closely as the price of Brent crude.

 

Making eco-friendly disinfectants from discarded wood! KIST develops high-efficiency carbon catalyst

Development of an eco-friendly carbon catalyst capable of producing hydrogen peroxide using waste lignin

National Research Council of Science & Technology

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This process involves using lignin, a sustainable biopolymer, as a precursor to form a cross-linked lignin structure via the Friedel-Crafts reaction, followed by a carbonization process to produce a lignin-based carbon catalyst. The composition of oxygen functional groups on the carbon surface varies depending on the carbonization temperature, and the selectivity for hydrogen peroxide production in the oxygen reduction reaction changes through the regulation of these functional groups. In particular, C=O functional groups induce high hydrogen peroxide selectivity, whereas OH functional groups tend to inhibit selectivity.

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Credit: Korea Institute of Science and Technology

Hydrogen peroxide, a versatile chemical used in a wide range of applications-from medical disinfectants to semiconductor manufacturing and water treatment-is an essential substance with global annual production exceeding tens of millions of tons. However, its production still relies on large-scale, energy-intensive facilities, and its transportation and storage involve high costs and significant safety management challenges. Recently, eco-friendly technologies that use electricity to directly produce hydrogen peroxide from water and oxygen have garnered attention; however, the catalytic performance and associated cost, which critically govern reaction efficiency, remain key barriers to practical implementation.

A research team led by Dr. Lee Young Jun of the RAMP Convergence Research Group at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST; President Oh Sang-rok), in collaboration with research teams led by Professor Yun Hongseok of Hanyang University and Professor Kang Junhee of Pusan National University, focused on lignin-a wood byproduct discarded in the timber industry-to overcome these limitations. The research team designed and developed a carbon-based catalyst capable of selectively generating hydrogen peroxide through electrochemical reactions using lignin, and demonstrated hydrogen peroxide production with a selectivity exceeding 95% under experimental conditions. This performance is comparable to that of conventional precious metal-based catalysts, and is significant in that it simultaneously achieves cost-effectiveness and high catalytic efficiency.

In particular, this study went beyond simply converting biomass into carbon materials; it applied a strategy to precisely control the fine chemical structure of the catalyst surface. The research team focused on the fact that the types and distribution of various oxygen functional groups on the catalyst surface have a decisive influence on the selectivity and efficiency of the hydrogen peroxide generation reaction. To verify this, they conducted experiments to gradually modulate the structure of the functional groups and selectively remove specific ones. As a result, they confirmed that this approach could suppress unnecessary reaction pathways and further enhance the hydrogen peroxide generation reaction.

Furthermore, by systematically analyzing the correlation between these surface chemical structures and reaction performance, they established design criteria for identifying which structural elements induce highly efficient reactions. This serves as a crucial fundamental principle that can be utilized in the design of catalysts for various electrochemical reactions in the future, and offers broad applicability across diverse sustainable chemical processes.

This achievement demonstrates the potential to convert waste biomass into high-value-added functional materials while also paving the way for energy-efficient, decentralized chemical production technologies. In particular, it is expected to contribute to the establishment of "on-site production" systems that generate hydrogen peroxide directly in the quantities needed at each location, thereby helping to reduce costs and improve safety across various industrial sectors, including water treatment, disinfection, and semiconductor manufacturing.

Lee Young Jun, a senior researcher at KIST, stated, "This is significant because we have developed a technology that efficiently produces hydrogen peroxide-an eco-friendly disinfectant-using waste wood byproducts," adding, "We plan to further enhance the catalyst's performance for application in various industrial settings."

 

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KIST was established in 1966 as the first government-funded research institute in Korea. KIST now strives to solve national and social challenges and secure growth engines through leading and innovative research. For more information, please visit KIST’s website at https://kist.re.kr/eng/index.do

This research was conducted with support from the Ministry of Science and ICT (Minister Bae Kyung-hoon) through the KIST Convergence Research Center Program (CRC23013-000), the Nano and Materials Technology Development Program (RS-2025-25442300), and the University-Based Research Center Support Program (2020R1A6A1A06046728). The findings of this study were published in the latest issue of the international journal *Applied Catalysis B: Environment and Energy* (IF 21.1, JCR field 0.6%).

 

It was confirmed that the composition of oxygen-containing functional groups (C=O, C-O, O-C=O, etc.) on the carbon surface changes depending on the carbonization temperature of the lignin-based carbon catalyst. Furthermore, a comparison of the electrochemical specific surface area (ECSA), electron transfer number (n), hydrogen peroxide selectivity, and production rate for each catalyst revealed that the catalyst prepared at 900 °C exhibited high hydrogen peroxide production performance in the oxygen reduction reaction. (CCL3: Carbon catalyst prepared by carbonizing lignin at 300 °C; CCL6: Carbon catalyst prepared by carbonizing lignin at 600 °C; CCL9: Carbon catalyst prepared by carbonizing lignin at 900 °C; CCL12: Carbon catalyst prepared by carbonizing lignin at 1200 °C)

 

This figure schematically illustrates the electrochemical reaction in a hydrogen cell under oxygen-saturated conditions using a lignin-based carbon catalyst as the working electrode, showing the process by which hydrogen peroxide is generated through the oxygen reduction reaction. A comparison of the hydrogen peroxide production rate with various reported catalysts confirms that the catalyst developed in this study exhibits high hydrogen peroxide production performance.

(CCL9: Carbon catalyst prepared by carbonizing lignin at 900 °C; CCL9-BA: Carbon catalyst with selectively blocked -OH groups on the surface)

Credit

Korea Institute of Science and Technology

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Journal

Applied Catalysis B Environment and Energy

DOI

10.1016/j.apcatb.2026.126606 

Article Title

Hydroxyl-blocking lignin-derived carbon catalysts for selective and durable hydrogen peroxide electrosynthesis

 

The weight of wheat

Carbohydrates affect weight gain and metabolic energy

Osaka Metropolitan University

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When presented with standard chow and bread or wheat flour, mice consistently chose the latter, leading to increased weight.

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Credit: Osaka Metropolitan University

Bread.

It is a staple that has sustained civilizations over centuries and is intrinsically etched into the very grains of society. However, as obesity rates continue to rise, it may now be time to retire this dependency in modern diets.

Obesity is a risk factor for many lifestyle-related diseases, so it has become paramount to prevent its further spread. Previous obesity research has mainly focused on excessive fat intake as the primary cause, thus prompting the use of high-fat diets in animal models. In contrast, carbohydrates, such as bread, rice, and noodles, are consumed daily as staple foods, but there is limited research examining their effects on obesity and metabolism. Furthermore, while “bread makes you gain weight” and “carbohydrates should be limited” are common perceptions, it has remained unclear whether this is due to the inherent properties of the food itself or to changes in dietary preferences and eating habits.

To knead out these unknowns, a research team led by Professor Shigenobu Matsumura at Osaka Metropolitan University’s Graduate School of Human Life and Ecology investigated whether carbohydrates, such as wheat, bread, and rice, are preferred by mice over standard chow, and how the consumption of these foods affects energy metabolism and weight regulation. The team then sifted deeper and established a system that divided the mice into feeding groups, Chow, Chow + Bread, Chow + Wheat flour, Chow + Rice flour, High-fat diet (HFD) + Chow, and HFD + Wheat flour. Changes in body weight, energy expenditure, blood metabolites, and gene expression in the liver were analyzed.

Results revealed that the mice exhibited a strong preference for carbohydrates and altogether stopped consuming the standard chow. Under these conditions, body weight and fat mass increased, even though total caloric intake did not increase significantly. Furthermore, in the rice flour intake group, weight gain occurred in the same manner as wheat flour. Conversely, mice in the HFD + wheat flour group exhibited less weight gain compared to those in the HFD + chow group.

“These findings suggest that weight gain may not be due to wheat-specific effects, but rather to a strong preference for carbohydrates and the associated metabolic changes,” said Professor Matsumura.

In addition, this study conducted indirect calorimetry using respiratory gas analysis. The results indicated that weight gain was not due to “overeating,” but rather due to a decrease in energy expenditure. Furthermore, analysis of blood metabolites revealed increased levels of fatty acids and decreased levels of essential amino acids. In the liver, there was an accumulation of fat and increased expression of genes involved in fatty acid synthesis and lipid transport. When wheat flour intake was discontinued, weight and metabolic abnormalities quickly improved. This demonstrates that switching from a wheat-based diet to a more balanced one makes it easier to control body weight.

“Going forward, we plan to shift our research focus to humans to verify the extent to which the metabolic changes identified in this study apply to actual dietary habits,” stated Professor Matsumura. “We also intend to investigate how factors such as whole grains, unrefined grains, and foods rich in dietary fiber, as well as their combinations with proteins and fats, food processing methods, and timing of consumption, affect metabolic responses to carbohydrate intake. In the future, we hope this will serve as a scientific foundation for achieving a balance between “taste” and “health” in the fields of nutritional guidance, food education, and food development.”

The findings were published in Molecular Nutrition & Food Research. 

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About OMU  

Established in Osaka as one of the largest public universities in Japan, Osaka Metropolitan University is committed to shaping the future of society through the “Convergence of Knowledge” and the promotion of world-class research. For more research news, visit https://www.omu.ac.jp/en/ and follow us on social media: X, Instagram, LinkedIn. 

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Journal

Molecular Nutrition & Food Research

DOI

10.1002/mnfr.70394 

Method of Research

Experimental study

Subject of Research

Animals

Article Title

Wheat Flour Intake Promotes Weight Gain and Metabolic Changes in Mice

 

Loneliness affects memory in older adults but does not accelerate brain decline, major international longitudinal study suggests

Whilst lonelier people performed worse in initial memory tests, over the course of seven years their ability to recall information declined at a similar rate

Taylor & Francis Group

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Loneliness affects the memory of older adults but does not speed up mental decline over time, suggests data from a major European study tracking more than 10,000 people over seven years.

Participants who reported high levels of loneliness performed worse on memory tests at the start of the research period. However, the ability of lonely people to recall information declined at a similar rate over the timecourse monitored as that of participants who did not feel alone.

The findings, published in the peer-reviewed journal Aging & Mental Health, come from an analysis of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) study, which
surveyed 10,217 people, aged 65 to 94, from 12 countries across the continent.

Loneliness has become a significant public health issue due to its impact on longevity, mental and physical health, and wellbeing.

These results add further weight to the strong links between feeling lonely and brain function in older people, while reinforcing the theory that isolation is not necessarily a risk factor for dementia.

Regular loneliness screening could be included in checks to test mental abilities in older adults, suggest the authors who are from the Universidad del Rosario in Colombia, the Clínica Universitaria de Navarra and Universitat de Valencia in Spain, and the Karolinska Institute in Sweden. They add that this approach could be one of several strategies that health professionals could develop to promote optimal ageing.

“The finding that loneliness significantly impacted memory, but not the speed of decline in memory over time was a surprising outcome,” says lead author Dr Luis Carlos Venegas-Sanabria, from the School of Medicine and Health Sciences at the Universidad del Rosario.

“It suggests that loneliness may play a more prominent role in the initial state of memory than in its progressive decline.

“The study underscores the importance of addressing loneliness as a significant factor in the context of cognitive performance in older adults.”

Loneliness and social isolation are among the most relevant risk factors for dementia. However, data on the link between loneliness and cognitive function are inconsistent. Some studies suggest loneliness accelerates cognitive decline over time while others have found no significant link.

The aim of this research was to assess the effect of loneliness on how memory changes over a seven-year period, namely immediate and delayed recall.

The analysis used data covering 2012 to 2019 from SHARE – a longitudinal survey launched in 2002 that examines the health and aging of Europeans aged 50 and over.

Participants included those from countries such as Germany, Spain, Sweden and Slovenia. All 12 countries were grouped into four geographic regions: Central, South, North and Eastern.

Anyone with a history of dementia including Alzheimer’s disease was excluded along with those whose activities related to daily living were ‘impaired’ (which was classified as people who have any  disability in activities such as walking, eating, or taking a shower).

Memory was assessed as the ability to recall information immediately and after a time delay. Tests included participants having to remember as many words as possible in a minute. This was from a 10-word list which was read aloud.

Loneliness was defined as ‘feeling alone’. Researchers asked participants three questions to measure their loneliness and to categorise them into low, average or high.

The questions were as follows: How much of the time do you feel you lack companionship?, How much of the time do you feel left out?, and How much of the time do you feel isolated from others?

Researchers also assessed physical activity, engagement in social activities, depression scores, diabetes and other factors which could potentially influence the research.

Results showed Southern European countries reported the highest levels of loneliness (12%) followed by the Eastern region (9%), Central (6%) and Northern (9%) regions.

Overall, the majority of participants (92%) reported either average or low levels of loneliness at the start of the research. The group with high levels (8%) was older, mostly female and self-reported worse health issues. In addition, they had a higher prevalence of depression, high blood pressure and diabetes.

Those in the high category had lower immediate and delayed recall scores at the beginning of the study compared to those with lower loneliness levels.

However, they experienced a rapid decline in memory similar to that of participants in the low and average loneliness categories. This steep ‘slope’ was observed between the assessments at year three and year seven.

The authors highlight that their research treated loneliness as something that did not change over time. However, they say that in the real-world perceptions of loneliness can change ‘in response to shifts in personal or environmental characteristics across the lifespan’.

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Journal

Aging & Mental Health

DOI

10.1080/13607863.2026.2624569 

Method of Research

Observational study

Subject of Research

People

Article Title

Memory trajectories in lonely individuals in Europe: an analysis of the Survey of Health, Aging, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE)

Article Publication Date

14-Apr-2026