The big volume water releases from Sevan in 2012 have become the reason of the negative regime of the lake, the head of the Commission for Sevan Problems, Vladimir Movsisyan, said at today's press-conference.
He said that as of 1 January 2013, the water level of the lake was by 3 sm less versus 1 January 2012. At present Sevan level is 1900m 18 sm. He recalled that last year a decision was made to increase water releases from the lake from 170 mln sq/m up to 313 mln sq/m. The Commission recommended to make water releases in a volume 280 mln sq/m, he said.
He also added that the hard situation in Ararat valley was the reason of the big volume water releases. Here the restored storage of the underground waters amounted to 1.226 bln sq/m, but Nature Protection Ministry allowed fish farms to use water in an amount 1.496 bln sq/m. This was a result of irresponsibility, he said and added that, as a result, 122 out of 638 artesian wells of the Ararat valley dried and 6200 ha were left with practically no water.
The expert said that the Commission has come forward with an offer to ban using of the underground waters or to introduce a semi-closed water using cycle at the fishing farms, as a result of which they will use maximum 450 mln sq/m of water every year, that is to say, several times less than now.