Epress.am News from Armenia
The residents of the town of Shnogh in the Lori province of Armenia, as well as several environmental organizations have filed an administrative complaint demanding that the court oblige the Ministry of Nature Protection of Armenia to audit the mining project near the village of Teghut. Environmentalists possess facts according to which the activities carried out by “Teghut” CJSC, a Vallex Group company, during the exploitation of the Teghut copper-molybdenum mine do not conform to the permissions given by the state.
At the Administrative Court on Monday, August 24, representative of the Ministry of Nature Protection Khachatur Khachaturyan expressed the opinion that the issue has been resolved; the required inspections, the official said, have previously been conducted and were subsequently suspended.
However, Hayk Alumyan, the plaintiffs' attorney, did not share Khachaturyan's opinion. Alumyan filed a motion for more detailed information and demanded that the court oblige the company to present facts about the audit – when it was launched and when suspended. Only after receiving this information would the plaintiffs drop the suit or file other motions, the lawyer said.
The defendant, however, refused to provide any more information, claiming that the inspections have been suspended by the government's decision.
Following the issuance of the complaint, the Ministry of Nature Protection ordered an audit on their own initiative which was to be conducted from July 24 to August 4. On July 30 the Armenian government decided to terminate the inspections. According to one of the plaintiffs, lawyer and environmentalist Arthur Grigoryan, this decision was politically motivated.
“Thus, the Ministry of Nature Protection was freed from the obligation to present the results of the inspections. Yet again they steered clear of a substantive discussion,” Grigoryan said.
One of the plaintiffs, environmentalist Anna Shahnazaryan said the termination by the government of the inspections carried out by the Ministry of Nature Protection was an intervention in the activities of this structure.
Verdict in the case will be handed down on Tuesday, August 25.