MINING DISCONTENT: ENVIRONMENTALISTS AGAIN RAISE CONCERNS OVER PLANS TO DIG FOR IRON NEAR HRAZDAN
By Gayane Lazarian
ArmeniaNow reporter
28.03.12 | 13:24
Environmentalists express their concerns over plans for an open-pit
iron mining operation as close as only 650 meters to the central
Armenian town of Hrazdan (in the Kotayk province), which can cause
pollution with heavy metal residue and, consequently, bring forth a
number of life-threatening diseases among the local population. One
of Armenia’s best recreation areas will be at risk, they warn.
President of the Greens’ Union Hakob Sanasaryan said during the
discussion of pros and cons of exploiting the iron mine, held by the
Generation of Independence NGO, that by giving priority to the mining
industry the government spells death for generations to come.
“The wastes will get into the river; moreover, the dust from mining
contains non-transformable metals that decrease soil fertility by
some 90 percent, cause infertility in humans, lung cancer and birth
defects,” he said.
In 2011, the Chinese Fortune Õ~Uil company purchased iron mines located
in the Hrazdan, Abovyan and Syunik provinces (Svarants village) for
$24 million from Nagin LLC belonging to MP Tigran Arzakantsyan and
Suren Ayvazyan, son of former minister of environmental protection
Vardan Ayvazyan, currently chairing the Standing Committee on Economic
Issues of the National Assembly of Armenia. In 2008 the Ministry of
Environment gave a positive expert report for the exploitation of
the Hrazdan mine.
Zhora Arakelyan, coordinating Hrazdan’s Aarhus center, says the
biggest issue in the exploitation of the mine will be the pollution
of drinking water. There are four water springs in the mine hill
valley that are 1,700 meters under the surface; these springs feed
four towns, namely Hrazdan, Tsaghkadzor, Charentsavan and Abovyan,
and make 30 percent of Yerevan water.
“By the old project a 270-meter-deep pit has to be dug in the hill
which is 1,890 meters tall. So, in fact, we’ll lose the water springs,
because they are on 1,700-m depth, and by digging 270 meters they’ll
reach down to 1,620 meter-depth,” he explains.
Arakelyan says that the Atayan hydro-electric power plant neighbors
the mine; the plant is old and might be damaged from the open-pit
mining method that implies explosions.
“The mine is not far from residential houses, as it is claimed in
the project: the nearest house is only 650 meters away,” he says.
Gevorg Harutyunyan, press secretary of the Fortune Resources company,
says exploratory works are in progress now.
“We have not started the mining stage yet. As soon as we are ready to
exploit we’ll adjust the project to all the provisions of the law. No
one will be making exceptions for us, so that we can give production
without meeting all the demands of the law,” he says.
The company-submitted project says the production wastes will be
drained into the River Hrazdan, will be purified at Kaghsi center,
and further irrigate the Ararat valley.
“The water filtering station of Kaghsi has not been functional for two
decades, and the river Hrazdan is of extreme importance for irrigation
of all of the territory of Armenia,” says Arakelyan.
Harutyunyan counters that they are not the country’s enemy and will
be using state-of-the art technologies; he added that in the coming
months they’d be meeting Hrazdan residents to discuss their issues
and concerns.