EcoLur
The world water day is celebrated on 22 March. In 2011 the main topic for world water day is “Clean Water fir Healthy World”. What’s the situation with water resources in Armenia and which water resources conform to our health? According to the official statement, our water resources are renewable and inexhaustible.
It should be noted that water resources are renewable, nevertheless, we may speak about inexhaustibility only taking into consideration water quality and its distribution.
The biggest reservoir of freshwater in Armenia is naturally Lake Sevan with its reserve of 33 billion square meters. Let’s see how we maintain our water treasure. According to the data from Environmental Impact Monitoring Center of Nature Protection Ministry of Armenia, they have recorded that concentration of a number of toxic metals exceed maximum permissible concentration in the rivers flowing into Lake Sevan and in the lake itself, as well as substances characteristic to sewage. Simply speaking, pollution sources are mining industry and sewage. Thus maximum permissible concentration of chromium, manganese, selenium, and aluminum is exceeded in different samples by 2 to 20 times. Maximum permissible concentration of nitrites and ammonium ions characteristic to sewage is exceeded a bit less.
Where are our clean mountain springs? Maybe they are in rivers? No, not in the rivers. Our rivers are polluted with the same products of human activities. Rivers flowing through settlements are polluted with sewage, such as the Hrazdan, Voghji, Pambak, Debed and Aghstev Rivers. Rivers where industrial wastes are dumped, mainly mining ones, have turned into current tails, such as Voghji, Karchevan, Akhtala and Norashenik rivers.
Artesian springs also are about to exhaust. Nature Protection Minsitry has issued so many permits to water users of Ararat Valley that the total amount mentioned in the permits has twice exceeded all the reserves of artesian waters.
March 23, 2011