court cases against gold mining project in Amulsar Currently there are several court cases against gold mining project in Amulsar. They have the following developments.
In the RA Administrative Court the complaint presented by 8 Gndevaz residents continues to be examined. The residents demand annulling permissions given for gold mine exploitation in Amulsar. Among the complainants were two environmental NGOs “Ecological right” and “EcoDar”, which however have been left out from the process based on the decision of the judge (Karen Zarikyan) made on August 30.
As a result the head of “Ecological Right” NGO Arthur Grigoryan appealed this decision at the RA Court of Appeal. However, a few days ago it turned out that the first court hearing is planned for April 26, 2019. This means appellation of administrative cases is impeded in Armenia.
Parallel to this a new complaint is launched at the Court of General Jurisdiction of Kentron and Nork-Marash Administrative Districts against “Lydian Armenia” company. The plaintiff is owner of land in Herher village of Vayots Dzor region, lawyer Harutyun Baghdasaryan. He claims that his right to property is violated and demands new assessment and expertise of Amulsar project.
Environmentalists are also up in arms against the mine. They argue that the Amulsar will not only impact Jermuk and the surrounding villages. Rather, because of the mine’s proximity to key water resources, all of Armenia may be at risk. In a country rife with corruption, what safeguards will there be?