ECOLOGY AND ECOLOGISTS: ARMENIA, 2009

EcoLur   

Summing up the outcomes of the last year one may say that 2009 was a year of active public environmental movement touching upon rather different environmental issues. 

The main risk-bearing issue is the continuous overdevelopment of the country’s natural resources. This sphere brings the business superprofit by making use of imperfect economic mechanisms of nature management, factual lack of appropriate assessment of damage caused to environment with all its vital components, weak control with high-level corruption.   

The geography of hot ecological spots in Armenia expands where risks for environment have irreversible nature.

In the sphere of energy public paid special attention to the construction of small HPPs, uranium project implemented by “Armenian-Russian Mining Company” and the construction of a new unit for the Armenian nuclear power plant. 

Despite seeming transparency and a huge number of figures, as a matter of fact, access to information in the sphere of energy is rather limited. Public has no access to information about risks and problems in the sphere of energy.

For example, the official information (visit the Ministry’s site www.minenergy.am) says: “...Seismic-resistant assessment of the Armenian nuclear power plant was carried out..., technical-economic substantiation for constructing a new nuclear power generating unit was worked out , ... “On Constructing a New Nuclear Power Generating Unit(s)” bill was submitted in the Republic of Armenia.”

Public didn’t have any participation in the discussion of these most important provisions in the viewpoint of nuclear safety. 

The public focuses on the uranium project implemented by “Armenian-Russian Mining Company” CJSC (ARMC). The company was founded in 2008 and its task is to investigate the uranium reserves in Syunik, and in case the presence of industrial reserves is confirmed, its task will also include development of the uranium mine. The shares of this company are divided into two (50% /50%) between Russian “Atomrarecopgold” Company and the Armenian Government represented by the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources.

Public hearings on “Conducing Geological Investigations of Uranium Deposits and Accompanying  Mineral Products in Syunik Marz” project organized by the Ministry of Power and Natural Resources, “Armenian-Russian Mining Company” CJSC, and the local government of Syunik Marz were held at the Aarhus Center in Kapan on 4 August 2009. Only geochemical characteristics of the project were presented. The company did not present either data concerning environmental impact, people health and safety, or any program for reducing harmful impact, or social programs. The official protocol of the public hearings distorted the speeches and suggestion of the local population representatives and NGOs. The locals worry while the company will be conducting investigations (investigation time period is 5 years), the locals won’t know what to do, whether or not to make their lives comfortable, to stay expecting for the start of developments at any moment, or to leave for almost uncertainty under the conditions of continuing economic crisis.

At present NGOs in Syunik Marz “Azatamart”, “Khoustoup”, “For Ensuring Ecological Safety and Developing Democracy” initiated a public campaign against the uranium project. 
    
Since September 2009 a public campaign on studying the issue of small HPPs was launched. According to the latest data, 81 small HPPS will operate starting from 2010 and still 71 projects will enter the construction stage. Under specialists, this is a huge load on Armenia’s rivers, moreover, the construction scheme for small HPPs suggested by the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources didn’t pass any public hearings. The Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources is submitted individual projects for environmental expert decision-making and not the whole scheme. The Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources supports the public campaign on small HPPs and thinks that, first of all, attention should be paid to Sevan basin where the rivers are a part of Sevan complex ecosystem. This territory is under the protection of the Ministry of Nature Protection of RA.  

Public campaign S.O.S Teghout started in 2006 still goes on and is directed against the development of Teghout copper-molybdenum mine implemented by Vallex Company Group.

Though the public didn’t succeed in stopping the government decision adopted for Teghout in 2007, it may by assessed positively the fact that non-governmental organizations, “Transparency International” Anticorruption Center, Helsinki Office in Vanadzor and “Ecodar”, transferred the process to courts.

The biggest achievement of the public movement can be considered the cancellation of the project conducted by "GeoProMining” international company on transferring the gold recovery factory from Ararat to Sotq within the bounders of Sevan basin. The project implementation would have endangered the strategic reserve of the freshwater not only in Armenia, but also in the whole Caucasus, as well as the whole ecosystem in Sevan. The lobbying of the project was carried out at top levels. 

S.O.S Sevan appeal was announced by the initiative group in the frames of the Alliance of Environmental NGOs. This movement was joined not only by the environmental organizations, but also art unions, scientific-research teams, political parties, scholars and culture personalities, staffs of higher educational institutions, the population of Sevan basin. As a result, a decision was adopted on the reconstruction of the gold recovery factory in Ararat Town, i.e. on the previous spot. Vladimir Movsisyan, Chairman of the Committee on Lake Sevan Issues, officially announced that this project was stopped due to the President’s political will.

S.O.S. Jrvezh public campaign received reciprocal support by official bodies: this time it was the Armenian Government represented by Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan. The campaign was directed against the government decision on alienation of land area of 21,76 ha from Jrvezh Forest Park and its transfer to the neighboring community. The alienated land area is a well-groomed pine forest located next to the capital. Yerevan practically has no such vacant green zones. As a result of the public campaign the government withdrew this decision and returned the land area to Jrvezh Forest Park.

A success of public influence can be considered the government decision on the mortuary in Voghchaberd that contains more than 500 tones of expired pesticides and other weed and pest-killer chemicals that must taken out of Armenia’s borders and eliminated with the help of special technology.

It’s hard to withdraw already adopted decisions, and in our opinion, one should highly assess certain phenomena, such as demonstration of state approach and the country leaders’ political will. At the same time, a conclusion should be made that the Ministry of Nature Protection of RA, a special department liable for the protection of environment, has no appropriate authorities or doesn’t use them to complete extent in order to resist the most flagrant violations independently or lobbying of influential people when making environmentally important decisions.

We decided to limit ourselves by summing up the results in those spheres that not simply attracted attention or became a topic for discussions, but united the public and set prerequisites for out participation to become not a fiction, but reality. Even a negative outcome is an outcome on the basis of which one may assimilate the experiences and come to conclusions. We hope that dialogue with state bodies which is not always successful will have a positive vector in new 2010 year, as many problems still remain unresolved, while the hottest spots already break out. 

Sevan: Increase in Lake Sevan level needed for the preservation of the lake ecosystem faces active opposition from a whole group of influential persons who have constructions on Lake Sevan shore, most of them being illegal (more than 1000). The Committee on Lake Sevan at the President of RA adopted a decision on level management not exceeding the level increase by 21 cm per year. We share the opinion of the Greens Union that this decision is not substantiated and is conditioned by the pressure exercised by business structures and adjacent influential bodies. 

Development of polymetallic mines in Sevan basin keeps on being a serious problem for the lake taking into consideration that only in Sotq gold recovery mine must increase its production by 3-4 times. According to the data submitted by the Monitoring Center of the Ministry of Nature Protection of RA, in October 2009 the concentration of heavy metals and pollutants in a dozens of rivers falling into Lake Sevan exceeds the permissible standard. The biggest excess in MPC was observed for vanadium (from 2 to 10 times), and for aluminum - from1,3 to 3 times. It should be noted that the Monitoring Center doesn’t submit the analysis of the samples from the bottom sediments of the river where heavy metals subside.

The industrial reserves of the fish in Sevan have completely disappeared. Not already speaking about the lake’s endemic fish, the trout, the whitefish has already disappeared, though its reserves in the 90’s made up approximately 30 thousand tons. At present the whole industrial reserve of the fish in Sevan hardly make up from 150 to 250 tons.

Armenia’s Rivers: The pollution of the Armenian rivers is conditioned by two main factors. This is the absence of purifying system for municipal sewer, including in big towns, and pollution with industrial flows and ore waters. According to the State Statistical Service, the discharge of sewage in 2008 made up 205 million cubic meters.

One of the most polluted rivers is considered to be Voghji transboundary river (southern boundary with Iran) exposed by big enterprises, Kapan Ore Processing Combine and Zangezour Copper and Molybdenum Combine. The breakdown emissions of the Artsvanik tailing, the ore water from Shahumyan and Qajaran Mines also are discharged into this river.

According to the data from the Monitoring Centre of the Ministry of Nature Protection of RA, in October 2009 the following maximum permissible concentrations were exceeded: nitrite, manganese, copper, zinc, sulphate ions, aluminium, vanadium, chrome, ammonia and selenium. The river section below Kapan is particularly polluted (Kapan Ore Processing Combine), where MPC for copper exceeds by 203 times.

On average, the samples taken from the Voghji River exceed the MPC as follows: ammonia – from 3 to 4,6 times, sulphate ions – from 1,6 to 2,5 times, aluminum – from 1,6 to 8 times, vanadium –3 times, manganese – from 3 to 3,5 times, copper – 6-7 times.
The Akhtala River, a tributary to the Debed transboundary river (the northern border with Georgia), is one of the most polluted rivers. The drainage of the Akhtala Ore Processing Factory flows into this river.   

According to the data submitted by the Monitoring Center of the Ministry of Nature Protection of RA, in the ore water of the Akhtala River (the spring num. 1) the content of copper, zinc and manganese exceeded MPC by 9199,0-10656, 363,1-397,6 and 580,9-642,3 times, respectively. One of the main sources for the river pollution is the Akhtala tailing which is already overfilled and doesn’t fulfill the functions of a hydraulic cleaner.

The issue of the emissions of the Akhtala Ore Processing Combine to the Akhtala River regularly raised during several last years, had no results for a long time. Only in 2009 the State Environmental Inspection imposed a fine in the amount of 10 million AMD (about 27 thousand USD). 

Atmospheric Air: According to the data submitted by the Monitoring Center, in 2008 harmful substance emission into atmosphere of Armenia in general made up 206,5 thousand tons. Out of this 83,4% is due to vehicles, 16,6% is due to fixed industrial objects.

65,1% of harmful substance emission from industrial objects is sulfurous anhydride. The main polluter is the Alaverdi Copper Smelting Combine that emitted 22,4 thousand tons of sulfurous anhydride in 2008. The enterprise operated with out-of-date technology and in the absence of trapping filters.

A whole spectrum of metals in emitted into atmosphere in the volume of 33,1 tons/per year with most content of copper and lead.

Dust is also a component inherent to the towns in Armenia. In 2008 the total amount of dust made up 3059,6 tons. The dustiest towns are considered to be Ararat and Hrazdan where cement enterprises operate. In October 2009 the content of cement dust in the atmospheric air of Hrazdan exceeded MPC by 4.6 times, while the content of cement dust in the atmospheric air of Ararat exceeded MPC by 4.1 times.

Soil: 26 polymetallic mines are being developed in Armenia. Among them there are truly giants such as Kajaran Copper-Molybdenum Mine. It is known that its borders stretch so far that whole Kajaran Town is located above rich copper and molybdenum reserves. Next to Kajaran Copper-Molybdenum Mine is the Shahumyan gold-polymetallic deposit, Kapan central deposit. Because of the negative impact of such a number of mining and industrial objects in the whole region of Syunik, including Kapan Town, Kajaran, and Agarak Town, adjacent communities are in a really hard condition close to ecological and social disaster. In some samples taken from the soil, water and agricultural products the content of heavy and toxic metals, such as copper, molybdenum, mercury, arsenic, vanadium, cadmium, selenium etc exceeds MPC (maximum permissible concentration) by ten times, sometimes, by hundreds times. The Center of Noospherical Studies drew up two reports on the ecological situation Kapan and Kajaran but none of the ministries, either the Ministry of Nature Protection of RA or the Health Ministry of RA responded these data, though it’s well known that women and children are the first to suffer from such pollution, i.e. the genofond of the whole nation.

The north of Armenia is Lori Marz. Tumanyan Region in Lori Marz is literally covered with mining enterprises such as Alaverdi Copper Smelting Plant, Akhtala Ore Processing Combine, Mhart Gold Recovery Factory, open-cast development of Shamloukh and Mhart deposits, three tailings and at last Teghout that includes all the risk components needed, such as the construction of the biggest tailing in Armenia with a volume of 200 million cubic meters, open-cast development of the deposit, deforestation and elimination of water sources.

Armenia’s Gold: During the last year and a half 7 new gold-bearing deposits have been added to 5 ones already being developed, and 43 more gold-bearing deposits are in the line. The Gold reserves in Armenia aren’t still specified. But it’s known that only Sotq deposit has more than 200 ton of pure gold, and this is not the final figure.
 
List of the Armenian metal mines being developed                                        

Reserve Mines

Wastes: The issue of wastes in Armenia is one of the most topical. Accumulation of wastes occurs mostly due to industrial wastes, as well as construction and household garbage. According to official data 11455,4 tons of wastes was formed in 2008.  Different enterprises paid 46,400,000 AMD (125,000 USD) to the state budget for waste management. It should be noted that ore production in Armenia takes place in an open-cast manner leaving thousands of tons of dumps and wastes of various danger classes. The aforementioned figure in the report produced by the National Statistical Service of RA may imply only one thing; no one pays for such kind of wastes.

Household garbage in Armenia is not utilized anywhere, even in towns. The biggest landfill is Nubarashen located in Yerevan. Garbage is dumped into nearest rivers and gorges in many towns of Armenia, for example, in Alaverdi, an industrial town.

Biodiversity and specially protected territories: As known, Armenia holds a leading position in the Caucasus for biodiversity. The second publication of the Red Book for flora included 463 species of top plants and 40 species of mushrooms. The Red Book for fauna included 155 species of vertebrates and 155 species of invertebrates.

The main reasons for the losses in the Armenian biodiversity are as follows: poaching, deforestation, overexploitation of natural resources, soil development, infrastructure development, unstable agriculture.

Preservation of biodiversity is directly connected with the protection of specially protected territories.

Despite the official policy for development of specially protected territories, the most attractive sections of conservation areas are under the threat of being alienated. In accordance with the government decision Ourtsasar Mountain is alienated from one of the richest preserves in the sense of biodiversity, “Khosrov Forest”, which is a reproduction place and corridor passage for the Armenian moufflon and Bezoar goat. Gilan section is alienated from the same Preserve where at present a hotel-restaurant complex is in progress belonging to the Speaker of the Armenian National Assembly.  “Dilijan” National Park practically has no land areas not rented for many years.

Enviornmental public percieves the aforementioned phenomena as ecological s.o.s. signals,  keeps on conducting public and information monitoring and expects the state bodies, first of all the Ministry of Nature Protection of RA to take immediate actions on the basis of these signals.

January 12, 2010