What problems do the inhabitants of the shores of Lake Sevan face? How to use natural resources while preserving them. What are the prospects in the new programs for littoral communities? These questions do not arise now. The whole set of problems is outlined, nevertheless, the proposed approaches and solutions have internal contradictions. There is no optimal model existing yet.
On May 17, "Center for Territorial Development and Research" NGO organized a round table in "Etiuni" hotel-museum in Ltchashen settlement, which was attended by public figures, representatives of the regional administration, and the experts of international projects. The main topics were the vulnerability of the local population, the search for alternative development resources, as well as issues related to the management and policy of Lake Sevan - a national and strategically protected water body.
On the vulnerability of the population
Over 90,000 people live in the vicinity of Lake Sevan. Considering that the level of the lake is a little more than 1900 m above sea level, the communities are also located at this lever and higher. The aftermath is oxygen starvation, limited choice of activities. The employment of people is also limited by the status of a specially protected area. The mirror and the shore of Lake Sevan is the area of Sevan National Park.
Fish stocks in the lake have sharply decreased due to overfishing and, as a matter of fact, ongoing poaching. The villages included in Vardenis community are considered to be in the bordering Qarvachar region, which was under the protectorate of Artsakh, and after the 44-day war came under the control of Azerbaijan. There is a problem of security, which directly affects economic activity.
Due to the shooting in Mets Masrik village, the construction of 55-megawatt Masrik 1 large solar and photovoltaic power plant was stopped, for which the government created exceptional conditions for the Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV) company implementing this project. The project is funded by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the International Finance Corporation and the European Union.
About Environmental Problems of Lake Sevan
The lake is getting waterlogged. This is the biggest problem – its solution exists, but has not been implemented yet. The eutrophication of Lake Sevan is due to the loss of the water layer of the hypolimnion. The isolating water layer can be formed if the lake level rises above sea level to at least 1905 m (including wave height). But it is hindered by the infrastructure growing on the shores of Sevan such as roads, power lines, capital buildings.
The participants of the round table raised the issue of reducing the limited water discharges from Lake Sevan. The problem is that the water balance of the lake is calculated differently. Currently, the water discharge limit of 170 million cubic meters is based on a balance sheet that considers the flow of water through Arpa-Sevan tunnel. The participants mentioned that when calculating the natural balance, it is necessary to rely on the volume that corresponds to the natural outflow of water from Lake Sevan.
It is not possible to solve the problem of improving the water quality of the lake. For many years the issue of banning the use of plastic in the territory of "Sevan" National Park has been raised. However, the issue is regularly removed from the agenda.
The main conclusion of the round table is that the contradictions should be eliminated not at the expense of nature, but at the expense of finding economic incentives for ecologically acceptable solutions for the ecosystem of Lake Sevan.
May 24, 2022 at 16:44