Strikes on fuel storage and energy infrastructure in Asaluyeh, southern Iran, released around 4,700 tonnes of volatile organic compounds into the air, according to Iranian Vice President Shina Ansari. She also said the attacks produced greenhouse gases equivalent to roughly 1.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide. Ansari said the pollution was serious enough that an evacuation of Tehran might have been needed, but the height of the atmospheric boundary layer kept most pollutants from reaching ground level in the capital. Those numbers matter beyond the immediate conflict. VOCs are a health hazard and a precursor to ground level ozone, and the CO2e estimate is a reminder that military strikes on energy sites carry a climate cost that usually goes unmeasured. The report is based on comments carried by the Tasnim news agency, so the figures are not independently verified, but they point to a recurring gap in emissions accounting: conflict-related releases are rarely counted in national totals.
