Water resources of reservoirs should not be used for energy purposes

25% of Armenia’s territory is under threat of desertification and over 80% of the country’s territory is subject to various risks of desertification. The coordinator of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) Ashot Vardevarian announced that data at the meeting with journalists today.

Discussing the problem of water resources in Armenia, he noted that the republic has enough water resources which, however, are not used economically. Besides, in Vardevarian’s opinion, the water resources of water-storage reservoirs should not be used for energy purposes. “Water does not collect in reservoirs not because of weather conditions, but because of a technical problem. If we really want, we can save water instead of using it fully for hydropower plants,” the expert stressed.

Vardevarian also spoke about the absence of fish passes in hydropower plants. According to him, the Ministry of Nature Protection is responsible for the sphere, but it lacks resources to reveal violations in each hydropower plant.

The UNCCD coordinator underlined the need for measures to ensure the operation of hydropower plants and at the same time the environment’s protection.