EcoLur
The green zones of Yerevan again appeared to be under massive attack. Late in November EcoLur received several alarms from the public green activitists that the owners of different buildings started to cut down trees to free place for their territories.
The first alarm was from Mariam Sukhudyan. “On Friday I received an alarm from 11-year-old Gayane, our group member. I ran out to the yard, but it was already late. Two trees had already been cut. The hot line of the Ministry didn’t work, but I succeeded in getting through to the State Environmental Inspection, and they sent people, invited the representative of the local administration and determined the species of the cut down trees, an ash tree and a plum tree, and made a formal report of this case. Meanwhile the administration employee refused to sign the protocol. The representatives from the Ministry advised me to apply to the police in order to have an opportunity to enter the house of those people who had cut down the trees and to fine them.” (See photos).
Mariam Sukhudyan raises a logical question, why didn’t the representatives of the State Environmental Inspection fine the culprit at the scene of the incident?
The next alarm was given by Arpine Galfayan. “At 17:30 on 28 November, Friday, I saw some smoking when I was walking along M. Baghramyan Ave. A tree was burning at the yard of House 46. I went into “Masha” Design Studio and asked whether the assistants knew who had fired the tree? They said they had no idea, but their employees were already putting out the fire.”
Arpine Galfayan also tried to get through to the Ministry of Nature Protection via their hot line, but nobody answered her call.
The next alarm was raised by Maria Aghajanyan and Hrayr Savzyan.
“On Friday I went out of home and I couldn’t believe my eyes. Three workers were trying to pull out a tree with its stems. I asked what they were doing. They answered that they were relocating the tree, they would plant 5 new trees on that spot.”
Inquiries led me to “Ellada” Fur Shop, where a woman said, “These trees are mine, I do with them whatever I want, and I want to relocate them into my yard.”
Another alarm was form public activist Artemis Leplejyan. “On Sunday I saw people cutting down a tree near SAS shop on Komitas St. I asked, whether they weren’t ashamed of what they were doing? They didn’t start a squabble, but the tree had already been cut down.”
The activists of the green youth action asks questions, whether permissiveness rules in Armenia? “A huge territory is given to the shop, and the owners do whatever they want. If they want to cut down trees, they do it, if they want to relocate trees, again no problem. It turns out if you don’t walk in this country with your head down trying not to notice anything, you become a betrayer and a snitcher, if you want to help anybody or try to protect the law, you get into troubles. Having such an attitude will bring our city to have nothing but concrete. Where is our dignity? Where?”
December 01, 2009