ARMENIAN FISH BREEDERS DISSATISFIED WITH GOVERNMENT-DESIGNED CONCEPT TO DEVELOP FISH BREEDING

/ARKA/
April 21, 2010
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, April 21. /ARKA/. Arkady Gevorkian, chairman of the
Association of Armenian Fish Breeders, said today his colleagues
were dissatisfied with a government-designed concept to develop fish
breeding and regulate this business.

Particularly, fish breeders oppose the government’s decision that
fish breeding farms must install water meters, which they say would
have a dire impact on their business.

The government wants also to raise the fee for use of land by fish
farms. Thus, according to Arkady Gevorkian, if the proposed changes
are effected, fish breeders will have to pay 19 million Drams for one
hectare of fishpond instead of the current 50,000 Drams. He said some
20% of fish farms had to shut down after the government imposed a 20%
VAT on import of fish forage.

"Introduction of new changes, especially now as the economy is
struggling to get out of the crisis, would kill the sector,’ he said
to a news conference today.

He said the Association of Fist Breeders has developed an alternative
package of solutions, which are being discussed by interested parties.

There are about 290 fish breeding farms in Armenia which produced
last year 4,500 tons of fish.

He also spoke about the government’s decision to ban fishing in lake
Sevan for three years saying commercial reserves of white fish in the
lake have dwindled from 40,000 tons during the Soviet era to 100 tons.

"For a full recovery of the white fish reserves in Lake Sevan the
authorities must step up fighting poaching and restore young fish
breeding farms,’ he said.

Experts from the Armenian Institute of Hydrology and Ichthyology
estimated last year that the commercial reserves of fish in Lake Sevan
were critical at 24o-250 tons, including some 17 tons of white fish.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress