Residents of Armenia’s Geghamasar town are complaining about the dust caused by the explosions in the Sotk gold mine, for which they had closed down the Vardenis-Karvachar interstate road Tuesday, demanding a meeting with the management of the company operating the mine.

Sevak Khachatryan, a resident of Sotk village and a participant in the aforesaid protest, told Armenian News-NEWS.am that their demand was met at the moment and they decided to reopen the road, but they could resort to this method of protest again if they do not reach a final solution to the matter.

According to Khachatryan, they do not demand the closure of the mine, as it is also a source of employment for the residents of nearby villages. "We demand that they resolve the issue of river pollution," he added, in particular.

According to the protesters, local organizations have done research and concluded that the environment is not harmed by the operation of the mine, whereas the respective damage is obvious—even to the naked eye.