Activists protest against cutting of perennial trees in Yerevan in  front of Yerevan Municipality

ArmInfo. Activists protest against the cutting of perennial trees in Yerevan and their replacement with new varieties, in front of the Yerevan Municipality.

Let us remind you that trees have already been cut down on the  streets of Tumanyan, Moskovyan, Sayat-Nova, Amiryan, Alek Manukyan  and others. According to the metropolitan municipality, since last  year an active program has been underway to replace trees that are at  the stage of losing their viability and are completely deformed with  valuable species. However, experts and citizens are signaling that a  mass slaughter is underway, since not old, but also young trees have  fallen under the saws. Representatives of environmental organizations  described the incident as an act of vandalism. According to them, in  the context of global warming, already in the summer, in hot  conditions, Yerevan will face a serious problem associated with the  lack of green spaces under which one could hide from the heat and the  increase in air pollution in the city.

According to one of the participants in the action, many already cut  down trees could be cured with one or two serums.  He noted that  there are appropriate drugs that could be used to treat the trees.  The same trees that the mayor's office plans to replace old trees  with will begin to produce results only after 10-12 years.  Another  participant in the action noted that many Armenian tourists, visiting  botanical gardens in foreign countries, pay entrance fees to preserve  trees that are 100-200 years old. In Armenia, these trees grow for  free, which in itself is an incredible luxury. "The decision of the  mayor's office is a crime, first of all, against Yerevan residents,"  she said.

The plans of the city authorities include replacing old trees with  sakura. However, according to the expert community, when implementing  a large-scale program to replace trees on a number of streets in  Yerevan, the municipality did not apply to government expert circles  to obtain their opinion. Neither the Institute of Botany of the  National Academy of Sciences nor the Center of Expertise for  Environmental Impact Assessment were notified of the project, and,  accordingly, had no opportunity to express their opinion. This  program was prepared by the leadership of the "Landscape Greening and  Environmental Protection" Community Non-Profit Organization (CNPO).  The decision was made at a working meeting of the CNPO, and the most  important issues of the program were discussed in the scientific and  technical council chaired by this organization.