Presidential oversight service head reveals abuses in use of artesian wells and illegal logging

|

USD

391.74

EUR

426.88

RUB

4.5721

GEL

141.28

Economy

25.12.2010, 02:13

Chief of the presidential Oversight Service, Ashot Hovsepian, speaking at a news conference today blamed the authorities of two provinces located in Ararat valley of ‘ruthless’ exploitation of the regions’ artesian waters.

YEREVAN, December 24, /ARKA/. Chief of the presidential Oversight Service, Ashot Hovsepian, speaking at a news conference today blamed the authorities of two provinces located in Ararat valley of ‘ruthless’ exploitation of the regions’ artesian waters.

‘Ineffective use of the Ararat region’s artesian basin over the last years, particularly, creation of fishing farms has damaged local ecology and as a result some artesian wells produce no water any more,’ he said to a news conference today.

According to him in 2008 August local authorities were told to stop provision of permissions for use of artesian waters, nonetheless following it 46 permissions were given by local authorities for drilling 71 deep artesian wells. He also added that all artesian wells had been drilled without water and geological designs.

According to Ashot Hovsepian, the damages caused by illegal logging amounted to 165 million Drams and so far only 10 million Drams or 6% of the damages have been restored. He said a study into the work of the State Nature Protection Inspection of the Ministry for Nature Protection has revealed a long string of abuses in Sevan and Dilijan reserves. Thus, 45 cases of breaches which caused 56 million dram damages were not sent to prosecutors. The State Nature Protection Inspection registered only 46 abuses of 465 discovered.

He said the Armenian Forest state organization signed in violation of the law contracts with various organizations on leasing land plots and the amount of lease fee was set by the inspection willfully. He said on late August 90% of 200 leasing organizations had lease arrears. He added that the government ordered collection of lease fees and a sizeable portion of outstanding debt has been collected. -0-

S&P expects Armenia's economic growth to halve in three years

Over the next three years, growth in Georgia and Armenia will almost halve, from 9.4% and 8.8%, respectively, in 2022-24, but will remain sustainable, according to a commentary by S&P Global Ratings analysts, as reported by FrankMedia.

14.03.2025 10:26

Dynamics of the decline in exports and imports in Armenia will last throughout the first half of the year – EDB

The decline in the value of exports and imports in Armenia in January by 49.2% year-on-year (y/y) and 33.5% y/y, respectively, was due to the fact that the positive impact of foreign trade in precious metals had been exhausted.

13.03.2025 15:00

Armenia's position in the “2025 index of economic freedom significantly worsens”

Armenia ranked 57th out of 184 countries in the 2025 Index of Economic Freedom, published by the Heritage Foundation.

12.03.2025 12:25

Freight traffic in Armenia grew by 12.9% in January, passenger traffic declined by 20.8%

The total freight traffic in Armenia in January 2025 amounted to 1,117.6 thousand tons, increasing by 12.9% compared to January 2024, while the total passenger traffic amounted to 12,728.6 thousand with a 20.8% decline, according to the National Statistical Committee.

10.03.2025 17:22

Risk assessment and portfolio diversification: CEO of Armenian company Cube Invest about myths and real features of investing

To form a successful investment portfolio, two main steps should be highlighted, said Mikael Margaryan, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the investment company Cube Invest.

10.03.2025 13:53

Service sector in Armenia grows by 12.6% in the first month of 2025, exceeding 280 billion drams

The volume of the service sector in Armenia in January 2025 amounted to 280,031.8 million drams (at current prices), showing an increase of 12.6% compared to January 2024 and 19.7% compared to December 2024.

10.03.2025 13:03

Domestic trade turnover in Armenia in January amounted to 39 billion drams with a growth of 9.9%

Domestic trade turnover in Armenia in January 2025 amounted to 379,155.1 million drams (at current prices), marking an increase of 9.9% compared to January 2024 and a decrease of 51.8% compared to December 2024, according to the National Statistical Committee of Armenia.

10.03.2025 12:14

Inflation in Armenia reaches the Central Bank’s target range – EDB

Inflation has reached the target range set by the Central Bank of Armenia, according to the weekly macroeconomic review by the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB).

10.03.2025 10:29