TEHRAN — A restoration plan is proposed to save Lake Urmia in which Iran will trade oil and gas with Armenia and Georgia in return for importing water, an Iranian MP has said.

“Iran will import water from with Armenia and Georgia in exchange for oil and gas,” Mehr quoted Ali Alilu as saying.Alilu said Lake Sevan in Armenia and Kura River in Georgia are the two water sources to provide Lake Urmia with water.College faculty members have done researches on the possibility of transferring water from Armenia and Georgia, Alilu added.Urmia Lake Revival Committee representative Khalil Saie has said that the plan is yet to be finalized since there are those who have opposed the plan.In a meeting between Iran’s parliament speaker and his Georgian counterpart on September 3, Ali Larijani also discussed the plan and proposed the exchange of oil for water, Saie explained.Saie also suggested that Lake Van, in Turkey, be another less expensive option on the table for transferring water to the lake.Lake Urmia which was once the largest lake in the Middle East and the sixth largest saltwater lake on earth with a surface area of approximately 5,200 square kilometer is dying down.The decline is generally blamed on a combination of drought, increased water diversion for irrigated agriculture within the lake’s watershed.The lake has declined six meters for the past 13 years and lost 85 percent of its water, meaning that the lake is on the verge of disappearance.MQ/MJ