Water abstraction from Lake Sevan for irrigation has been suspended since September 19. A total of 224.508 million cubic meters of water was released from the lake this year, out of which 54.508 million cubic meters is additional water intake.
As of September 22, the level of Lake Sevan is 9 cm lower than the same date last year, it is 1900.56 m.
Decreasing the lake level directly affects the water quality of the lake by increasing the concentration of harmful substances for the lake. From the point of view of fisheries norms, the water quality in Lake Sevan was poor even when the lake level reached its highest point of 1900.90 m per year in the second quarter of 2021. According to the data provided by "Hydrometeorology and Monitoring Center" SNCO of RA Environment Ministry.
In the second quarter of 2021, according to the assessment of the fishing norms of Lake Sevan, the maximum permissible concentration (MPC) exceeded the following criteria in the samples taken from different depths of Small and Large Sevan: chemical demand for oxygen, five-day biological demand for oxygen, ammonium ion, zinc, copper, chromium, vanadium and selenium concentrations. It will be clear when SNCO publishes the data for the third and fourth quarters of 2021, what changes have taken place in the water quality of Sevan after the level decreased.
September 23, 2021 at 11:53