Amulsar defenders will not allow causing irreparable harm to ecology of Armenia
Amulsar defenders will not allow causing irreparable harm to ecology of Armenia
ArmInfo. For the fourth day, actions against the development of the Amulsar gold mine continue. As activist of the movement Gohar Hunanyan said in an interview with ArmInfo correspondent, the situation is relatively...
ArmInfo. For the fourth day, actions against the development of the Amulsar gold mine continue. As activist of the movement Gohar Hunanyan said in an interview with
ArmInfo correspondent, the situation is relatively calm today. <At
the moment, the situation around the mine in the morning without
incident. The cabins installed by Lydian Armenia have been
dismantled, "the activist emphasized.
To note, these cabins were built by the company to start blasting
operations in an open mine. The houses were built under high-voltage
power grids, which is unacceptable from a safety point of view.
Hunanyan also stressed that the whole world today is fighting for the
preservation of the ecology, however, in Armenia the situation is the
opposite. "We are fighting for clean air and clean water. Jermuk is a
resort like Karlovy Vary and Kislovodsk. And it will be very
disappointing if the development of the mine has a negative impact on
the environment. The government of the country constantly says that
new jobs will be created with the development of the mine. But
ecology is much more important. The negative impact of the mine will
affect the whole country, not only Jermuk. Almost the entire city of
Jermuk is fighting for the mine not to be developed , "Hunanyan
emphasized.
The activist also noted that she moved to Armenia from the United
States, where she lived for more than 25 years, and she is very upset
that the beautiful ecology of the resort city can be destroyed in one
day. "During the USSR, my father was the director of the Jermuk
mineral water plant. I have been familiar with the problems of the
city, its ecology since childhood. In 2019, I met with Prime
Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan. Introduced this problem to him.
I hope that the government will finally adequately respond to the
current situation. Each of our governments makes mistakes, and the
people suffer. We believe the promises, but they turn out to be a
lie, "Hunanyan emphasized. "Life or wealth? I think the conclusion is
obvious," Hunanyan concluded.
To note, Lydian Armenia is a subsidiary of the British offshore
Lydian International. Environmentalists and ordinary citizens are
concerned that the development of the gold mine may lead to the
pollution of groundwater in Jermuk and Lake Sevan. In addition to the
water basin, the public is also concerned about the possible presence
of uranium occurrences at the mine, as evidenced by geological
exploration data from the Soviet era. For more than a year and a
half, environmental activists have blocked the road to the mine.
Since this week, law enforcement agencies have tried to unblock the
approaches to the mine, but they failed to achieve visible results.
Jermuk activists and residents stepped up blockages on the road and
went to a sit-in protest after the company, hoping to reopen the
mine, erected bunkers and was about to start blasting the mine.