Syunik residents will leave their homes, if search for uranium continue

If the search for uranium continues in Syunik marz (province), the residents will leave their homes, environmentalist Inga Zarafyan and Karine Danielyan told a press conference today, expressing their grievances and concerns over the issue.

Some 11,000 signatures have already been collected against those research works, they added.

"The local population is very much concerned about that program. Digging works have already started in Lernadzor village; the entire community is under threat. People say that if those works continue, they will leave the area. Inhabitants of Lernadzor village have said that they have forbidden their community leader to sign any document related to the uranium [searches]," said Inga Zarafyan.

Karine Danielyan, in turn, said that they are categorically against that program, as there are no such technologies in the world that would make it possible to mine uranium without polluting the environment.

"The harm will be more compared to its economic benefit. As a result clean agriculture will be impossible to develop in Syunik," said he, adding that Russia for example can afford mining uranium as it has vast areas, which cannot be said for Armenia.

Given there are 15 chemical dams and at least 2 cemeteries of extremely dangerous chemical waste, according to Danielyan, mining of uranium, which will increase the level of radio activity, will cause a new waive of migration.

"Searches were conducted during the Soviet era, and we know the level of lithosphere we have. Today it is being additionally researched for exploitation purposes. We are in an active seismic zone, therefore, such risky steps should not be taken," said she.