11/05/2005 – One of
Armenia's premier nature reserves is at
risk from a plan to construct a highway
through sensitive forest areas.
The highway, which will connect Armenia
with Iran, is expected to run through 17km
of the reserve, boasting 1,074 types of
plants, many of them endemic, as well as
Armenian mufflon (wild sheep) and the endangered
Caucasian leopard.
According to WWF, the project threatens
to destroy at least 30ha of the reserve’s
territory and will inevitably lead to deforestation
of some of Armenia's unique virgin oak forests.
“Shikahogh is the only place where the
forests remain intact in our country and
is considered to be a treasure not only
for Armenia but the rest of the world as
well,” said Dr Karen Manvelyan, Director
of the WWF Caucasus in Armenian.
"The highway will split Shikahogh
into two parts and not only disturb the
course of life in the reserve but will also
be easily accessible for poachers and loggers."
More than 20 non-governmental organizations
recently attended a WWF-initiated forum
to discuss the proposed highway. The forum
resulted in an open letter addressed to
Armenian President Robert Kocharyan, the
Speaker of Parliament, the Prime Minister
and Prosecutor General, advising officials
that the highway would violate Armenia’s
law on Specially Protected Nature Areas.
The Armenian Environmental State Expert
Examination Department of the Ministry of
Nature Protection has not yet approved the
project. According to the department’s director,
Ashot Santrosyan, the construction of the
road will be considered illegal without
the Ministry’s approval and land allocation.
WWF, together with local officials and
other organizations, has proposed four alternative
routes the highway can take to bypass the
reserve. The proposals are currently under
governmental consideration.
NOTES:
• The Caucasus leopard (Panthera pardus
ciscaucasica) is the most critically endangered
species in the Caucasus ecoregion. A rapid
investigation conducted through WWF support
has shown that about 20 leopards survive
in the Lesser Caucasus Mountain Chain and
Talysh Mountains. It is believed that there
are 5–8 leopards in Armenia.
