YEREVAN MUNICIPALITY DISCLAIMS ALL RESPONSIBILITY FOR ILLEGAL FELLING OF 20 TREES IN CITY CENTER

ArmInfo
2010-05-06 14:27:00

ArmInfo. Yerevan Municipality has disclaimed all responsibility for
illegal felling of 20 trees in the city center for construction of
a cafe in the "Student Park."

The official website of the Yerevan Municipality says the Ministry
of Nature Protection of Armenia is authorized to control and apply
penalties. In the meanwhile, during the discussions on the given
problem on April 27 a representative of the Ministry Garnik Manukyan
said the owners of the cafe have all the necessary documents for
construction. Crucial is that the document have been approved by the
Yerevan Municipality.

The main problem is that the park, which earlier belonged to the
Agrarian University, has been transferred to the Yerevan Municipality,
which approved large-scale construction on the place of the park
despite its love to flora and fauna. G. Manukyan said the decision
to allot the area for construction was not coordinated either with
the Ministry or with other authorities concerned. Unfortunately,
the municipality and the ministry disclaim all responsibility for
the situation.

To recall, the cafe in one of the Yerevan parks has been a subject for
ceaseless disputes between ecologists and Municipality of Yerevan
for over a month. According to the Association of Consumers of
Armenia, the cafe "swallowed" 20 trees, which is proved by photos
and video-materials. At the same time, the official position of the
Municipality is that the trees became the victims of not an axe, but
excavators, which allegedly caught them accidentally. Transparency
International Anti-Corruption Center has already pledged to sue the
owner of the construction. Internet users also came out in support of
the park. A group "We are the owners of our city" has been created at
Facebook social net that has involved over 2000 people. They initiated
signature collection under the open letter to President Serzh Sargsyan
demanding restoration of the park. Discussions on the given problem
were held at the Municipality on May 5 with participation of the group
members who say that no specific decisions and agreements were made.