Tehran oil depot fires stoke toxic air and water fears as war targets infrastructure
Thick black smoke over Tehran after a weekend of strikes on oil sites has sharpened fears that the US‑Israel‑Iran war is leaving a toxic legacy across the region. Environmental specialists and Iranian authorities warn the blazes could foul air, soil and water for years, endangering millions far beyond the immediate blast zones.
Iranian news outlets reported that Saturday’s airstrikes hit four oil storage facilities and an oil transfer and production center in Tehran and neighboring Alborz province, igniting large, hard‑to‑control fires. Israel described the targets as “fuel storage facilities in Tehran” linked to military operations.
Iran’s Petroleum Ministry said four people were killed in the attacks. Videos posted online showed oil spilling into streets and towering plumes of smoke and flames over the capital into Sunday. Rain fell in Tehran and the nearby city of Karaj the following morning, prompting Iran’s Department of the Environment to advise residents to avoid unnecessary outdoor exposure and remain indoors as much as possible.
The Iranian Red Crescent warned that toxic chemicals in the air could lead to acid rain capable of causing skin burns and serious lung damage, and urged people not to use air conditioners or go outside immediately after rainfall.
Doug Weir, director of the UK‑based Conflict and Environment Observatory (CEOBS), said the oil fires release a complex mix of pollutants with varying toxicity, including particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, nitrous acid, carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide and volatile organic compounds such as formaldehyde, dioxins, furans, hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.
People living nearby may suffer acute respiratory effects, particularly those with preexisting conditions, he said.
Longer‑term exposure through contaminated soils and water could pose developmental, neurological or carcinogenic risks, with contamination lasting “for years and decades.” A CEOBS assessment noted that staying indoors offers limited protection during severe pollution events because outdoor particulates readily infiltrate buildings; indoor concentrations can approach outdoor levels.
Tehran’s relatively stagnant winds mean substantial rainfall is needed to scrub hazardous particles and gases from the air. While blackout conditions have prevented direct measurements, weather models and satellite imagery suggest rainfall so far has been limited.
Oil fires have left deep environmental scars in previous conflicts. During the 1991 Gulf War, retreating Iraqi forces set hundreds of Kuwaiti oil wells ablaze, sending massive smoke plumes across the region and contaminating soil and groundwater. More than three decades later, their environmental damage still persists in Kuwait.
Weir noted that while oil infrastructure is often targeted in war, it is unusual for such incidents to occur in such densely populated areas. As the war spreads across the Middle East, attacks on energy and other critical facilities are raising alarms about cascading environmental harm that could outlast the current fighting and complicate recovery for years to come.