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In turn the Kechut reservoir is less than three miles (1.61km) from Amulsar. But Sevan is connected to the nearby Kechut reservoir by a tunnel which has been used since communist times to regulate the water level of the lake. So there is no life for us without the lake.”Īt an altitude of 6,000 feet, Lake Sevan is a unique biosphere that attracts scientists from around the world. But we must do our best to keep it clean, transparent – to keep it the way it’s always been. “Since my youth, I’ve been proud of the lake and I am still proud that I work on it, and live next to it. We had arranged to meet Levon Hkopyan, captain of a Soviet-era research vessel that monitors the lake.
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It was to this extraordinary place we headed next. Others told us there is an even bigger potential threat from the mine, that it could have a serious negative effect on Lake Sevan, the largest body of water in the whole of the Caucasus, holding some 25 percent of Armenia’s fresh water.
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The Amulsar gold mine is one of the most controversial projects in recent years in Armenia Should any toxic discharge from the mine contaminate these precious aquifers, locals say it would be a catastrophe for the town. The remarks were warmly received this is Armenia’s Baden-Baden and famous for its mineral water, sold all over the Caucuses. He made similar hints during a speech at his next stop, at the spa town of Jermuk, which is just 9 miles from the mine site. Nevertheless, in the wake of the velvet revolution – and drawing inspiration directly from it – the protesters at Amulsar began their blockade in the hope the new government would take notice.Ī few days before December’s poll, Pashinyan travelled to the region to speak to the protesters and, though still outwardly noncommittal about what decision he will take, he dropped some reassuring clues when he told them he would always put the country’s environment first. Ghaplanyan is part of a new generation of politicians swept to office during the velvet revolution last summer when journalist-turned-politician, Nikol Pashinyan, began a long march to the capital from the west of the country, promising to end the endemic corruption and economic mismanagement that has dogged Armenia for decades.įor all the dreadful environmental problems mining has brought Armenia in the past, the country’s battered economy is in dire need of the foreign investment and jobs that, properly run and managed, the industry could bring in. Irina Ghaplanyan, Armenia’s First Deputy Minister of Nature Protection, agrees saying: “Lax legislation and very low fines on pollution led to an explosion of the mining industry … it’s my personal belief and opinion that the mining sector is not good for Armenia.” Like most developing countries only the elite have been profiting.” There are hugely corrupt scams, huge crimes.
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In a country so dependent on agriculture, this kind of pollution has become a critical and very controversial issue.Īccording to Gagik Avagyan of the Moscow Carnegie Centre, “Armenia has got only problems because of these mines. Instead, time after time, they have been left with land contaminated by toxic mine residue – left over heavy metals and poisons such as lead and arsenic. The country has a long history of environmental disasters relating to the industry come-and-go projects that, its detractors told us, had enriched a few but from which little or no benefits trickled down to local communities other than some transitory employment. Hostility to mining in Armenia is perhaps understandable. Gagik Margaryan, a Nagorno-Karabakh veteran A long history of environmental disasters Our community mostly does farming, agriculture and gardening, and we all know perfectly well we can't carry on if the mine starts to work. But all of them seem hardy and committed, determined to fight to the end. There were others here too, we discovered tourist industry workers and villagers simply fearful that their lives will change if the mine goes into production. “Our community mostly does farming, agriculture and gardening, and we all know perfectly well we can’t carry on if the mine starts to work.” Gagik Margaryan, a veteran from the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, explained why he had come to the blockade. “I am turning 60 years today,” he told us, gesturing to the peak behind him, “and I’m ready to spend another 60 years supporting Amulsar. Mkrtchyan Knyaz, a grizzled bear of a man, was celebrating his birthday. We arrived to see one group just as they were opening a bottle of sparkling Armenian wine. A temporary hut set up by activists and members of the public alike, participating in blockading the Amulsar mining project