Why are businessmen indifferent to deposit development?
On March 31, a protest action against iron-ore deposit development will be held in Hrazdan town.
Experts have repeatedly reported that the development of the Hrazdan deposit may lead to an environmental disaster, as the deposit is at 800 meters from the town of Hrazdan and at 1.5 kilometers from the River Hrazdan.
"Once the project is approved, whole city will lie in dust," says environmentalist Inga Zarafyan, Chairwoman of "Ecolur" NGO.
She says that according to assessments of U.S. experts, the development of the deposit will result in pollution of not only irrigation water, but also drinking water, as there are several springs near the hill of the deposit, and hundreds of people use these springs.
"The experts expressed a negative opinion, pointing out to the toxic metals of the deposit, such as them chromium and arsenic," said Zarafyan adding that the development of the deposit will also affect Tsakhkadzor.
Inga Zarafyan is surprised at the indifference of the Ministry of Nature Protection and businessman as the site is thought to be beneficial for the tourism industry.
Ore mining at the Hrazdan deposit will start in 2014 and the mining output will total 1.5-2 mln tons per year.
It is noteworthy that all the three mines to be developed by the Chinese company Fortune Oil (in Hrazdan, Abovyan and Svarants village) belong to Souren Ayvazyan, the son of the former minister of nature protection of Armenia Vardan Ayvazyan, and to Armenian MP Tigran Arzakantsyan.
