YEREVAN. – When discussing the Amulsar matter, we can’t ignore also the issues in connection with the security of our economy and, in general, the safety, safety environment of the country. The Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, on Monday noted this on his Facebook livestream.
“We [the Armenian government] can’t ignore the environmental risks that we have; that’s ruled out,” he said. “My position is that if the [Amulsar gold] mine is safe to operate—by environmental and other criteria, it can be operated. [But] if it’s not safe, it can’t be operated. Now, the body that’s in charge for all that says that, ‘I guarantee.’ And we are saying that if that’s not guaranteed, the mine will be closed in 90 days.
“Second, we have to take into account the concerns of the economic community that if we don’t take the right approach on this matter, what impact could this have for the economy of Armenia.
“We also can’t disregard the security domain matters that if we don’t handle this situation correctly, what consequences could it have regarding our safety environment.”
Referring to possible solutions, the Prime Minister said: “I want to ask our Jermuk [town] residents that they deblock all roads leading to the Amulsar mine. Second, I have already given an instruction to the environmental inspection authority to start inspections at Amulsar. Also, the Minister of Environment has raised—on the basis of the Skype [video]conference with ELARD and the conclusion of ELARD—several questions, and the environmental inspection authority has certain powers to find the answers to those questions.
“[But] I can say from now what can happen as a result of those inspections. Option one: everything is fine, there are no [environmental] violations. Option two: there are violations, inaccuracies that can be eliminated without design changes. In that case, the changes will be made, and no need will rise for a new EIA [Environmental Impact Assessment]. Option three: these violations can’t be eliminated without a new design, and that means it’s about a new EIA.”
The American-British Lydian Armenia company began construction of the Amulsar gold mine in 2016, announcing it will invest more than $400 million in this project.
Environmentalists and activists, however, have kept the roads to Amulsar closed for a long time. They oppose Amulsar’s operation, and argue that the exploitation of this gold mine will have a disastrous impact on the environment.
In 2019, the Armenian government petitioned to the ELARD consulting firm of Lebanon for an expert conclusion on Amulsar. The government announced that it will make a final decision on Amulsar’s operation only after receiving this conclusion.
Subsequently, the ELARD expert conclusion stated that environmental risks will be manageable if proper monitoring is carried out at Amulsar.
But following a recent videoconference with ELARD experts, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan wrote on Facebook that several new circumstances had emerged during this videoconference, and which need to be investigated and assessed.
And he instructed the Ministry of Environment to decide whether the Amulsar gold mine project needs to undergo a new Environmental Impact Assessment.
