EcoLur
Upon the initiative of EcoLur NGO, Public Environmental Court will try the case “On Impact of Developing Metallic Mining on Environment and Human Health in Armenia ” based on journalist Tehmine Yenoqyan’s application at “Karin” Hall”, “Ibis” Hotel at 12:00 on24 June 2019.
Armenia has been facing serious challenges because of extensive development of metallic mining, non-extraction of a huge amount of rare and dispersed elements and ores due to continuous application of cheap technologies for mining of natural resources and not adhering to the entire cycle of ore processing, while overcoming these challenges requires colossal amounts of money. In individual cases, the consequences of the mining cannot be eliminated at all.
The land areas, rivers and agroproducts polluted with heavy metals and toxic materials are increasing in Armenia year by year. Agricultural and forest land areas turn into mining infrastructures and tails.
The mining industry doesn’t adhere to the requirements of reasonable use of the natural resources, conservation, improvement and recovery of the environment and all this happens under the conditions of weak supervision and control of the state over the mining business. In its turn, the legislation in force in Armenia enables the mining business paying negligible amounts of money for the pollution of the nature, caused damage, even allows not paying for 1 billion tons of mining wastes accumulated in the tailing dumps in the country and even over.
So far the impact of mining on human health is not officially approved when the studies of international bodies and the research substantiate the impact of heavy metals on the human health.
The Public Environmental Court will examine the participation and liability of the competent state bodies for the current situation: that of RA previous government, RA Nature Protection Ministry, RA Health Ministry, RA Ministry of Emergency States, RA Ministry of Energy Infrastructures and Natural Resources, RA Agriculture Ministry, RA Environmental and Mining Inspection.
June 21, 2019 at 14:36