Edgar Ghazaryan: Jermuk will lose the status of a health resort city  if the Amulsar mine is developed 

ArmInfo. In order for Jermuk to  maintain its status as a resort and health city, appropriate  conditions must be provided not only within the city, but also its  circumference.  This opinion was expressed by Edgar Ghazaryan, former  Ambassador of the Republic of Armenia to Poland, now the head of the  apparatus of the Constitutional Court, former  governor of Vayots  Dzor region (2012-2014) in an interview with the Prime Minister of  Armenia Nikol Pashinyan.

According to Ghazaryan, in addition to other negative effects, it  must be understood that the operation of the mine involves about  10-25 explosions daily, which is about 25 tons of dust. In this  context, according to the head of the Constitutional Court's  apparatus, no matter what the examination would say, this effect on  the resort and health town cannot be ignored. "Jermuk is the only  resort and health resort city of national importance, which means  that within a radius of 50-60 km the heavy metal industry is not  allowed (the Amulsar gold mine is 10 kilometers in a straight line  from Jermuk, Ed. note)," Ghazaryan said.

In addition, as the former governor pointed out, despite the fact  that, perhaps, the company operating the Amulsar mine compares  favorably with others by a higher level of social responsibility, it  must be remembered that initially the same Kajaran was built as a  mine, and only then settlements created around the mine. "In the  meantime, Jermuk was created as a health resort city, and the  development of a mine in the neighborhood will cause permanent damage  to the city," he said.

To recall, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan visited Jermuk today in  order to ascertain the mood of the people regarding the development  program of the Amulsar gold mine. Residents of the city categorically  told the prime minister that they insisted: "Jermuk should remain a  resort city, Amulsar - without a mine." Many tourists and guests of  the city, in an interview with the Prime Minister, noted that they  chose the city precisely because of its spa and wellness character,  and if the mine is developed in the immediate vicinity, it is  unlikely that they will visit Jermuk next time.

To recall, on August 14, the Investigative Committee of Armenia  presented an expert opinion on the Amulsar project of the consulting  company Earthlink & Advanced Resources Development (ELARD).  Based on  the conclusion of the examination, the IC of Armenia stated that  there is no direct connection between the underground waters located  on the territory of the Amulsar project and the thermal hot springs  of Jermuk. There is also no connection with the waters of the Sevan  basin. Moreover, as indicated in the IC, during an earthquake, a  certain concentration of acid drainage can penetrate into the basin  of Lake Sevan through the Spandaryan and Ketchut reservoirs. However,  the combination of this concentration will be insignificant on the  scale of Lake Sevan. The third important conclusion: the impact on  the Arpa, Vorotan and Darb rivers can be mitigated if Lydian Armenia  takes 16 environmental mitigation measures proposed by experts. As  the head of the IC Hayk Grigoryan pointed out, Lydian Armenia  representatives have already expressed their readiness to implement  15 of the proposed 16 measures: they are already carrying out 10  measures, 5 will be ready to conduct them in the near future.   Residents of the resort town of Jermuk, environmentalists and  activists opposed to the development of the mine did not agree with  the conclusions and came out to protest.  

On August 21, during the promised "live broadcast," the Prime  Minister gave approval to the development of the Amulsar mine.  According to him, the Armenian government will conduct constant  monitoring during the development of the Amulsar mine. "Today,  according to our clear data, Amulsar does not harm Sevan.  It will  work according to the highest environmental criteria. If we do not  fulfill the conditions set by us, they will not take us seriously. I  am 99.9% sure that the mine does not pose a threat to the environment  of the RA. Therefore , we must fulfill the conditions that we set,  "he said, concluding by expressing bewilderment by the protest  actions of disobedience arranged by citizens.