The Environmental Protection First coalition has issued an appeal to civil society representatives, states and international environmental organizations in connection with Armenia hosting COP17, the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity.
According to Report, the coalition’s appeal says:
“Although COP17 aims to prevent biodiversity loss for the sake of nature, holding the conference in a country responsible for land degradation, transboundary river pollution and systematic ecocide is nothing short of a double standard.
Genuine concern for nature must be free of double standards, selective approaches and false environmental advocacy. We therefore call on all participants and delegates attending COP17 to go beyond standard talking points and question the environmental pollution caused by Armenia both within its borders and across the region through transboundary rivers.
We urge COP17 participants in Armenia to raise these issues at every possible opportunity during the summit:
– Chemical destruction of transboundary rivers by Armenia: For decades, toxic waste containing heavy metals discharged by the Zangazur Copper-Molybdenum Combine and the Kapan Mining and Processing Plant has severely polluted the Okhchuchay River. Once a thriving waterway, it has been turned into a toxic, rust-colored chemical swamp. This environmental pollution has devastated biodiversity in the area, including the natural environment surrounding settlements historically inhabited by Western Azerbaijanis who were expelled from Armenia. It also hinders these people from returning to their ancestral homes and living there with dignity in the future.
– Environmental pollution in Azerbaijani territories during Armenia’s 30-year occupation: During the occupation, Azerbaijan’s Karabakh and East Zangazur regions were systematically devastated through destruction, deforestation and the illegal exploitation of natural resources.
– Hazardous industrial projects near the Azerbaijani border: Armenia’s attempts to implement heavy industrial and metallurgical projects in areas close to the Azerbaijani border, such as Arazdeyen (Yeraskh), are an example of the deliberate placement of environmentally harmful industries in border areas.
– Unregulated mining and upstream river pollution: Ongoing mining operations in Armenia and the discharge of toxic waste into transboundary rivers with virtually no treatment threaten Azerbaijan”s ecological balance, soil fertility and water resources.
– Armenia has yet to join the UN Water Convention: Armenia is not a party to the Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (the Helsinki Convention) and refuses to cooperate with neighboring countries in this area. It is unacceptable for a state that has long caused environmental damage across borders and destroyed ecosystems to attempt to portray itself as environmentally responsible while remaining outside this international convention.
Genuine global cooperation on biodiversity can be built only on honesty, transparency and joint efforts to protect nature. The international community must not allow Armenia to use the hosting of an international event to cover up its numerous alleged environmental crimes.”