EcoLur
“Every year the State Complex program on the recovery, preservation, reproduction and natural development and usage of Lake Sevan ecosystem is approved, for which implementation over 370 million AMD is allotted from the state budget. Every year Nature Protection Ministry issues a positive opinion to these outcomes of this program and announces about the effectiveness of the expenses of state funds.
In 2012 EcoLur NGO and other local NGOs in Gegharkounik Region, “Blejyan” NGO and “Territorial Center for Development and research” carried out the public monitoring of the state program. We visited 40 communities of Gegharkounik Region and found out that none of the communities is officially included in the complex program and the program hasn’t been discussed with them and their opinion was asked. Thus, Article 18 of RA Law “On Lake Sevan” is directly violated in all three clauses:
Each year 60 million AMD is spent for the recovery of trout population, but the significant part of the young fish dies because of long passage, difference in habitat etc. Moreover, the trout can’t spawn in the rivers, as almost in all places suitable for spawning you can find SHPs constructed. It’s a fact that the trout population hasn’t been recovered. Every year 125 million AMD is spent for the cleaning of shores, nevertheless, they are poorly cleaned. The locals asked to provide them an opportunity to clean the shores from forests FREE OF CHARGE, while in exchange use the cut down trees as fuel. This proposal hasn’t been accepted, and as a result, the companies, which implemented this program for budget funds, cut down trees with expensive timber for sale, but they left prickly sea-buckthorn bushes, roots etc, which had gone under water.
The open development of Sotq gold mine and Shorzha mine of chromites impacts the water quality in the lake, but the companies don’t bear any responsibility for the lake pollution. At the same time, in accordance with Article 16 of RA Law “On Lake Sevan”, the competent state body in nature protection is entitled to demand from business entities and other entities the necessary information about nature protection and nature management. It should be mentioned that the Nature Protection Ministry didn’t carry out any inspection of GeoProMining Gold Company in Sotq. While the working group set up upon Prime Minister’s instruction and Nature Protection Minister’s order, where EcoLu was also included, wasn’t able to conduct investigations in Sotq, as GeoProMining Gold Company didn’t allow to make any photo and video shooting in Sotq mine it develops. In this regard, several laws at once have been violated: “On Lake Sevan”, “On Environmental Impact Expert Assessment” and Aarhus Convention.
For the first time Lake Sevan has a negative balance due to increase in water outlets from Lake Sevan up to 320 million cubic meters. The substantiated public protest joined by the residents of Gegharkounik region, as well as the opinion of Scientific-Expert Committee on Lake Sevan Preservation were not taken into consideration. That is, Articles 18, 19 and 20 of RA Law “On Lake Sevan” have been violated.
EcoLur supports the following proposals worked out due to joint discussions with the representatives of local communities, NGOs, experts of the Center for Zoology and Hydroecology of NAS RA and the administration of Gegharkounik Region:
1) to strictly comply with the requirement of RA Law “On Lake Sevan”, 2) To consider Lake Sevan as a potential strategic reserve of drinking water and applying the existing standards, 3) To redistribute budget funds allotted for the state program on the recovery, preservation, reproduction and natural development and usage of Lake Sevan ecosystem, including local communities as co-implementers at least in the part of recovering trout population and shore cleaning, 4) To ensure positive balance of Lake Sevan agreeing all legislative amendments with the Scientific-Expert Committee on Lake Sevan Preservation by NAS RA, 5) to declare illegal all the capital construction lower than 1908 meters above sea level, 6) to ban prolongation of term of operating SHPs and the construction of new HPPs on rivers flowing into Lake Sevan, 6) to set up a fish farm-reserve on the basis of Ltchavan Lake for the breeding and preservation of maternal composition of endemic fish species and ensure strict control.”
“EcoLur” Informational NGO has dispatched proposals to RA National Assembly Chairman Hovik Abrahamyan, RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan, RA Nature Protection Minister Aram Harutyunyan and Vladimir Movsisyan, Chairman of Lake Sevan Issues Committee by the President of Armenia.
December 27, 2012 at 14:09