BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 13. Armenia continues to create serious environmental problems not only for Azerbaijan, but also for the Caucasus, Chair of the public "Environmental Education and Monitoring" association Gamza Yusubova told Trend.
According to her, the damage caused by Armenia from its own mining industry worries both the local residents of Armenia and the world community.
"Authoritative non-governmental organizations engaged in environmental protection in the world have begun to express protest against such actions. Members of the local civil society, as well as NGOs, made a statement about a large metallurgical plant in the Arazdeen district. After that, we sent an open letter to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on stopping the environmental disaster caused by mining operations," she said.
Yusubova noted that the ecological system and environment in the territories of Azerbaijan, which were under the occupation of Armenia for 30 years, has been severely damaged.
"Armenians have turned Karabakh and Eastern Zangazur into an ecological disaster zone. Wastes of chromium, nickel, copper, molybdenum, zinc and other metal contaminants of the Zangazur copper-molybdenum combine, the Gafan Mining and Processing Plant discharged into the Okhchuchay river pose a serious threat not only to the river but to all vicinities. All the biodiversity, the living world of the river has been destroyed. The Okhchuchai flows into the Araz river, largerly polluting it. Considering that the Araz river is used for irrigation and farm economies, its pollution causes serious harm to vast scale of lands," she said.
“The mining industry of Armenia does not adhere to any standards. A large metallurgical plant under construction by Armenia in Arazdeen violates the Espoo Convention (The Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context). Armenia is pursuing a destructive policy in this area. Armenia exposes the region to serious environmental danger," she added.
Azerbaijani ecologists sent an open letter to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, in which Armenian enterprises polluting the environment were listed. The letter noted that the destruction of the ecosystem as a result of ongoing mining operations poses a threat not only to the environment of Armenia, but also stretching beyond the neighboring countries and calls on Armenia to immediately cease the activities of enterprises posing a threat.
Moreover, it was stated that the construction of a new metallurgical plant in the Arazdeen district in Armenia, which is being built contrary to the requirements of environmental standards and international conventions, should be stopped. The potential impact of this metallurgical plant's toxic chemical waste on the local ecosystem could be enormous.
Dumping waste into the Araz river means a tragedy for the living organisms in it, and large farms using water from this river for irrigation. Contamination of drinking water can also lead to the spread of infections in border areas. This will create a serious public health crisis in all over the region.
