Responsibility for safeguarding Naqsh-e Rostam does not rest solely with Iran's Ministry of Cultural Heritage. The Ministry of Energy, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Fars Governorate, the Regional Water Company, and other relevant government agencies also bear direct responsibility for protecting the natural setting of this World Heritage site. Protecting cultural heritage is impossible without safeguarding the region's land and water resources.
The archaeological conservation expert further emphasized that Naqsh-e Rostam now requires decisive, science-based, and cross-sectoral action more than ever before. If effective measures are not taken today to control groundwater extraction and prevent the expansion of water-intensive agriculture, the damage inflicted in the future may prove irreversible.
The expert concluded that preserving Naqsh-e Rostam and the Ka'ba-ye Zartosht (Kaaba of Zoroaster) is not merely a matter of maintaining a number of ancient stone monuments. Rather, it is about safeguarding Iran's historical identity, protecting its cultural values, and preserving a shared heritage of humanity.
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