New circumstances on Amulsar need analysis and assessment - Armenian premier
30.08.2019,
12:40
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan summarized Friday the results of the online news conference with Earth Link & Advanced Resources Development (ELARD) Company that was held on Thursday. Pashinyan promised Jermuk residents to hold the conference as he visited the resort and nearby residential areas in recent days. "In the course of the conference new circumstances emerged, an they need analysis and assessment," Pashinyan wrote on his Facebook page.
YEREVAN, August 30. /ARKA/. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan summarized Friday the results of the online news conference with Earth Link & Advanced Resources Development (ELARD) Company that was held on Thursday. Pashinyan promised Jermuk residents to hold the conference as he visited the resort and nearby residential areas in recent days. "In the course of the conference new circumstances emerged, an they need analysis and assessment," Pashinyan wrote on his Facebook page.
In the beginning of the online conference, Pashinyan pointed out difficulties in commenting the conclusion ELARD has made on Amulsar gold field development - the conclusion contains the information about numerous faults, irregularities and the lack of data.
"But as a whole, it all comes to the same thing - environmental risks can be controlled," the premier says in his Facebook post. "Is it true that application of the 10+6 proposed measures will make environmental risks controllable?"
It had been reported earlier, he said, that of these 16 proposed measures, 10 have already been planned by Lydian, the company developing Amulsar.
Riccardo Huri, the project coordinator, said that environmental risks should become controllable
in the immediate vicinity of the gold field in the event of a normal commissioning and if the experts' proposals are added to Lydian-proposed measures.
He said if the proposed steps are taken then the mine development will have no significant impact on water resources - both underground water and rivers.
It is possible, he said, to take the measures which will make it possible to be stuck to the standards set by the Armenian government without restrictions in consumption of water resources.
The project coordinator finds it necessary to carry out a new study based on appropriate complemented data, which will confirm already presented conclusion.
He said that the Lydian-proposed measures are not sufficient - it is necessary to reconsider the assessment of impacts on environment.
Members of the Armenian National Assembly as well as representatives of the governing agencies and Lydian Armenia Company were present at the online conference.
The development of the Amulsar project was halted in 2018 June after environmental groups and local residents set up illegal blockades preventing access to the mine. They argue that the project would pollute the Jermuk mineral water springs and Armenia's largest Lake Sevan. Police have failed to remove the protestors.
In July 2018, bowing to the pressure of Lydian Armenia and environmental activists Armenia’s Investigative Committee launched an inquiry to examine claims of willful concealment of environmental pollution data regarding the mine. The Lebanese consulting firm ELARD was contracted as part of this investigation to review the results of the previous two environmental assessment studies on the mining site.
On August 15 the Toronto-based Lydian International Limited announced that the Special Investigative Committee of Armenia (ICA) released the ELARD report on the environmental audit .
In a statement, Lydian quoted Hayk Grigoryan, the head of ICA, as saying that the investigative body had analyzed the information and findings provided by the international audit report and found there were no grounds for criminal prosecution and continuation of criminal proceedings against the company.
The audit focused on the “wilful concealing of information about pollution of the environment by officials related to the exploitation of the Amulsar gold mine” and was started in March this year.
Lydian Armenia was founded in 2005, and all 100% shares in it are owned by Lydian International. The Amulsar mine program is the first project of the company in Armenia. The Amulsar gold deposit is the second largest deposit in Armenia in terms of gold reserves and is said to contain about 31 million tons of ore and 40 tons of pure gold.
Armenian local environmentalists and residents of nearby villagers have been protesting against the development of the mine for years, claiming that the mining activities would endanger the region’s water resources and the local population’s health. -0-
In the beginning of the online conference, Pashinyan pointed out difficulties in commenting the conclusion ELARD has made on Amulsar gold field development - the conclusion contains the information about numerous faults, irregularities and the lack of data.
"But as a whole, it all comes to the same thing - environmental risks can be controlled," the premier says in his Facebook post. "Is it true that application of the 10+6 proposed measures will make environmental risks controllable?"
It had been reported earlier, he said, that of these 16 proposed measures, 10 have already been planned by Lydian, the company developing Amulsar.
Riccardo Huri, the project coordinator, said that environmental risks should become controllable
in the immediate vicinity of the gold field in the event of a normal commissioning and if the experts' proposals are added to Lydian-proposed measures.
He said if the proposed steps are taken then the mine development will have no significant impact on water resources - both underground water and rivers.
It is possible, he said, to take the measures which will make it possible to be stuck to the standards set by the Armenian government without restrictions in consumption of water resources.
The project coordinator finds it necessary to carry out a new study based on appropriate complemented data, which will confirm already presented conclusion.
He said that the Lydian-proposed measures are not sufficient - it is necessary to reconsider the assessment of impacts on environment.
The development of the Amulsar project was halted in 2018 June after environmental groups and local residents set up illegal blockades preventing access to the mine. They argue that the project would pollute the Jermuk mineral water springs and Armenia's largest Lake Sevan. Police have failed to remove the protestors.
In July 2018, bowing to the pressure of Lydian Armenia and environmental activists Armenia’s Investigative Committee launched an inquiry to examine claims of willful concealment of environmental pollution data regarding the mine. The Lebanese consulting firm ELARD was contracted as part of this investigation to review the results of the previous two environmental assessment studies on the mining site.
On August 15 the Toronto-based Lydian International Limited announced that the Special Investigative Committee of Armenia (ICA) released the ELARD report on the environmental audit .
In a statement, Lydian quoted Hayk Grigoryan, the head of ICA, as saying that the investigative body had analyzed the information and findings provided by the international audit report and found there were no grounds for criminal prosecution and continuation of criminal proceedings against the company.
The audit focused on the “wilful concealing of information about pollution of the environment by officials related to the exploitation of the Amulsar gold mine” and was started in March this year.
Lydian Armenia was founded in 2005, and all 100% shares in it are owned by Lydian International. The Amulsar mine program is the first project of the company in Armenia. The Amulsar gold deposit is the second largest deposit in Armenia in terms of gold reserves and is said to contain about 31 million tons of ore and 40 tons of pure gold.
Armenian local environmentalists and residents of nearby villagers have been protesting against the development of the mine for years, claiming that the mining activities would endanger the region’s water resources and the local population’s health. -0-
