Jaz Murian Lake

Hamun-e Jaz Murian
Coordinates	27.4908°N 58.5461°E / 27.4908; 58.5461
Type	Seasonal salt (hypersaline) lake
Primary inflows	Bampur River, Halil River
Primary outflows	none: all water entering the lake is lost through evaporation
Basin countries	Iran
Surface area	3,300 km2 (1,300 sq mi)

Map of the Jaz Murian region

Hamun-e Jaz Murian (Persian: هامون جازموریان‎) is an inland basin or depression in southeast Iran, straddling the provinces of Kerman and Sistan and Baluchistan. The area of Hamoon and Jazmourian basin stretches to 69,600 square kilometers, with the western part of 35,600 square kilometers in Kerman province and the eastern part of 34,000 square kilometers in Sistan-Baluchestan province.

The Jazmurian Wetland is located in an endorheic basin at the southern edge of the Dasht-e-Lut. Several factors such as high evaporation, overexploitation of groundwater, dam construction on the rivers feeding the wetland, and the effect of drought and climate changes have caused this wetland to dry out during the recent years.

History

Mauryan empire towards the satrapies of Gedrosia part of which were ceded by Seleucus to Chandragupta. The discovery of the remains of a large Buddhist sanctuary on "Koh-i-Khwaja" in Sistan suggests that this province also was perhaps included in the Mauryan empire, and the Buddhist influence reached there in the time of Asoka himself."

Further south, that Jaz Morian Lake have marked this side the western boundary of the Mauryan empire. As the name suggests, this place commemorates some signal victory or achievement of the Mauryan emperors. It may be the construction of the lake itself like the big Sudarsana lake by Chandragupta further east in Kathiawad.

Geography

At the center of the basin is a "seasonal lake," or hamun. The lake can remain almost totally dry during dry years, while in wetter years it can have water year around. The most recent flooding of the basin took place in June 2007, when Cyclone Gonu dumped over 5 inches of rain over the basin. That ended years of unusual drought, which had seen the lake in the central basin remain dry for several years. Jaz Murian now has a large lake at its lowest point.

Jaz Murian is an oblong shape, east to west, surrounded by high mountain ranges reaching peaks in excess of 6500 feet (2000 m). The lowest elevations are to the extreme west of the basin towards the towns of Kahnuj and Minab. Two principal rivers flow into the basin: from the west, the Halil Rud, and from the east, the Bampur River . However, neither river brings much water to the central parts of the basin to feed the lake, as their waters are largely or totally removed for agriculture on the way. After Jiroft Dam was built on the Halil Rud and went under operation in 1992, the perennial river at the downstream did not receive its environmental flow and appeared as an ephemeral river since then, this affected the Jaz Murian seriously.

Due to its isolation, distinct communities live in the basin, ranging from native Bashkardi speakers to immigrant Somalis.

Cultural importance

In the scriptures of the Zoroastrian religion, the basin has a holy character, similar to that of Hamun-e Helmand. These scriptures call the basin by its Middle Persian name, "Chitro Mêyân."

References

• J. V. Harrison, "The Jaz Murian Depression, Persian Baluchistan," The Geographical Journal, Vol. 101, No. 5/6 (May - Jun., 1943), pp. 206–225.
• N. L. Falcon Frs, "From Musandam to the Iranian Makran," The Geographical Journal, Vol. 141, No. 1 (Mar., 1975), pp. 55–58.