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Transparency International Armenia is appealing to the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Armenia, presenting a number of reasons why the Amulsar mine should not be exploited and calling for the cancellation of the expert assessment opinion previously given to the Amulsar project.
Dear Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Armenia,
E The expert examination performed by ELARD-TRC companies in connection with Amulsar mine exploitation should have been carried out by the Ministry of Nature Protection with its “Environmental Expertise” SNCO.
E Along with studying the ELARD-TRC expert opinion on Amulsar, we recommend to examine the study by Transparency International Anti-Corruption Center in 2016.
(https://transparency.am/en/publications/view/208). This document outlines a number of risks that have been identified in the decision-making process for Amulsar itself. In particular:
E Amulsar gold reserves have been changed for several years for obscure reasons and changed four times over several years.
In the case of Amulsar mine exploitation, the opinion submitted by the Lake Sevan Expert Committee was not taken into account for unclear reasons.
''The World Wildlife Fund Armenia stated that the implementation of the project does not comply with the provisions of the biodiversity conservation legislation, which was not taken into account.
“Lydian Armenia” CJSC, without starting a business and making a profit, about has donated 120 thousand USD to Jermuk City Development Fund He, which is headed by the son of the mayor of Jermuk. The mayor has changed his previous negative stance on the Amulsar project.
In 2014 Lydian Armenia CJS donated 250 thousand USD to the Luys Foundation without starting a business and making a profit. The members of the Executive Board of the Fund are the President of Armenia and the former Prime Minister.
“Lydian Armenia” CJSC has received favorable conditions several times through legal acts.
It is obvious that under systemic corruption mining permits could not be granted by clean processes and it is very important that in post-revolutionary Armenia the Ministry of Environment revises its former vicious practices and revokes the previously issued expert opinion,” Transparency International Armenia says in its press release.
August 23, 2019 at 16:38