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RESIDENTS COLLECT SIGNATURES AGAINST THIRD TAILING DUMP IN THEIR VILLAGE
http://www.epress.am/en/2014/02/17/residents-collect-signatures-against-third-tailing-dump-in-their-village.html
02.17.2014 23:26 epress.am
Residents of Melikgyugh rural community in Aragatsotn marz (province)
collected signatures against the construction of the third tailing dump
in their village. A third tailing dump of Mego-Gold LLC's Tukhmanuk
gold mine was already once rejected by the RA Ministry of Nature
Protection, but on Feb. 10 the issue of opening the tailing dump was
again discussed in the village.
Environmentalist Silva Adamyan, in conversation with Epress.am, said
the villagers weren't informed that there would be public hearings,
which is a procedural violation. According to her, village mayor
Hakob Lazarian committed one other violation: public hearings must
be held at least 20 days after the previous hearing; meanwhile,
public hearings in Melikgyugh took place on Feb. 10 and 12.
Villagers greeting the environmentalists also said that they're asking
the public hearings be held not in Yerevan, but in their village, as
they are the community that is affected. "The villagers greeted us
with complaints. They said that the two tailing dumps already have
made life unbearable in the village, they are damaging the bees and
nature, the environment. Thus, they are fundamentally against the
exploitation of a third tailing dump," said Adamyan.
According to her, environmentalists also intend to appeal in writing
to the Ministry of Nature Protection, as operation of a third tailing
dump is not permitted.
Adamyan said that Mega-Gold, under the guise of a new project,
introduced a project that the ministry already rejected.
According to environmentalists, operation of the tailing dump is
inadmissible for the following reasons: data on what the tailings
contain don't correspond to the composition of ore, and there is
no data on heavy metals and toxic elements, which remain after the
gold is extracted. There is no assessment of the contamination of
the soil and water arising from the existing two tailing dumps. This
contamination can be assessed indirectly from the findings of analyses
conducted by the RA National Academy of Sciences' Center for Ecological
Noosphere Studies and scientific articles about the composition of
ore in the Tukhmanuk mine. There is no data on the possible effect
of tailings on public health. As evident from the Ministry of Nature
Protection's response, the ministry's experts did not conduct research
in the village and relied exclusively on the project's documents,
which don't reflect the real situation.
http://www.epress.am/en/2014/02/17/residents-collect-signatures-against-third-tailing-dump-in-their-village.html
02.17.2014 23:26 epress.am
Residents of Melikgyugh rural community in Aragatsotn marz (province)
collected signatures against the construction of the third tailing dump
in their village. A third tailing dump of Mego-Gold LLC's Tukhmanuk
gold mine was already once rejected by the RA Ministry of Nature
Protection, but on Feb. 10 the issue of opening the tailing dump was
again discussed in the village.
Environmentalist Silva Adamyan, in conversation with Epress.am, said
the villagers weren't informed that there would be public hearings,
which is a procedural violation. According to her, village mayor
Hakob Lazarian committed one other violation: public hearings must
be held at least 20 days after the previous hearing; meanwhile,
public hearings in Melikgyugh took place on Feb. 10 and 12.
Villagers greeting the environmentalists also said that they're asking
the public hearings be held not in Yerevan, but in their village, as
they are the community that is affected. "The villagers greeted us
with complaints. They said that the two tailing dumps already have
made life unbearable in the village, they are damaging the bees and
nature, the environment. Thus, they are fundamentally against the
exploitation of a third tailing dump," said Adamyan.
According to her, environmentalists also intend to appeal in writing
to the Ministry of Nature Protection, as operation of a third tailing
dump is not permitted.
Adamyan said that Mega-Gold, under the guise of a new project,
introduced a project that the ministry already rejected.
According to environmentalists, operation of the tailing dump is
inadmissible for the following reasons: data on what the tailings
contain don't correspond to the composition of ore, and there is
no data on heavy metals and toxic elements, which remain after the
gold is extracted. There is no assessment of the contamination of
the soil and water arising from the existing two tailing dumps. This
contamination can be assessed indirectly from the findings of analyses
conducted by the RA National Academy of Sciences' Center for Ecological
Noosphere Studies and scientific articles about the composition of
ore in the Tukhmanuk mine. There is no data on the possible effect
of tailings on public health. As evident from the Ministry of Nature
Protection's response, the ministry's experts did not conduct research
in the village and relied exclusively on the project's documents,
which don't reflect the real situation.