Environmental and state damage amounted to 8.8 bln AMD in 2024

ArmInfo.The Environmental Protection and Mining Inspection Body (EPMIB) of Armenia estimates that the damage caused to the environment and the state in 2024 was 8.8 billion AMD. This was announced at the final press conference of 2024 by the head of the inspection, Hovhannes Martirosyan, who noted  that this figure had increased by 3 billion compared to the previous year.  Speaking about the risks, Martirosyan emphasized that in both 2023 and 2024, special attention was paid to three key areas: the use of water resources, subsoil and land protection. According to him,  the largest number of violations were recorded in these areas. Presenting the damage caused to the country in specific areas, Martirosyan noted that in the water resources sector, it amounted to 1.3 billion AMD, and in the illegal exploitation of subsoil and related mineral resources, it reached almost 1.7 billion AMD. 

Additionally, the volume of illegal extraction of minerals amounted to 4.5 million cubic meters.  The damage to the flora and fauna of the country amounted to 1.132 billion drams. According to Martirosyan, positive dynamics are recorded in this area. For example, illegal felling of trees has noticeably decreased compared to last year. However, much more work needs to be done in this direction.  Regarding land use and protection, the head of the inspection body noted that there was damage amounting to 2.3 billion AMD. Martirosyan explained that the issue stems from the improper use and harm to land, along with unlicensed landfills that use agricultural land. "The damage in the atmospheric air protection totaled 2.36 billion AMD. The primary concerns involve illegal use and emissions from the exploitation of significant deposit volumes," the head of the inspection body stated, adding that fines totaling  242 million AMD were returned to the state budget in 2024. 

At the same time, according to Martirosyan, the indicators for  atmospheric air pollution remained almost the same as last year. Most of the violations were recorded at construction sites in Yerevan. Speaking about plans for 2025, he announced the intention to conduct 200 inspections, continue to improve the skills of employees and introduce new technologies to monitor the biodiversity of forest areas. According to Martirosyan, this will allow for obtaining more accurate data on the state of forests and improving control measures in  subsoil exploitation.