Climate change and human interaction are being blamed for the dramatic decline of Iran's Lake Urmia, which was once the second-largest hypersaline lake in the world.

According to a, the decline of the lake has both direct human and climatic causes.

The study is the first to compare the relative impact of climate and water management on the water flowing into the lake.

Using 50 years of data from 1960 to 2010, the researchers found that the annual flow of water into Lake Urmia dropped by 48 percent over the study period.

According to the researchers, 60 percent of this decline was caused by climate changes, including changes in precipitation and temperature. The remaining 40 percent could be attributed to water resources development, including the diversion of water for irrigation purposes that would otherwise flow into the lake.

(Scott Peterson/Getty Images)

At a Glance

Climate change, human interaction has conspired to threaten the world's second-largest hypersaline lake in the world.The study concluded that climate change had an even greater role than previously thought.

"Saving Lake Urmia will require both nationalactionto improve water management and international cooperation to address the issue of climate change," said IIASA and Wageningen University researcher and study leader SomayehShadkam.

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The study offers little consolation in hopes of reversing the decline of the lake. Previous studies highlighted the dominant role of water usage in the changes to the lake'ssurface area. This new study clearly indicates that climate change has an even greater role than previously thought.

"Water resources and climate change are inextricably interlinked," says IIASA Director General and CEO Professor Dr. Pavel Kabat, a coauthor on the study. "This is just one area where an integrated systems viewpoint is vital for providing sound advice to policymakers trying to solve such pressing issues."

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The Great Salt Lake, taken by satellite on September 29, 1987. (NASA/Landsat 5)