It Seems They Do Not Grant Building Permits in Every Free Corner of the Capital: Garnik Danielyan

Member of the "Armenia" parliamentary faction Garnik Danielyan has stated: "Recently, there have been rising concerns about the high level of air pollution in the capital. Unfortunately, these concerns are justified, as evidenced by data from the "Hydrometeorology and Monitoring Center" and statistics from IQAir. The health of our citizens, parents, and children is at risk.

In some neighborhoods of the capital, unprecedented levels of air pollution have been recorded on different days. Recently, 708 AQI was registered in Avan-Arinj, which is the highest in the world. At this pace, Armenia will soon top the list of countries with the highest levels of air pollution.

Instead of taking immediate measures to resolve the issue, the authorities present incomprehensible justifications, blaming the region's geography for the problem. It seems they do not grant building permits in every free corner of the capital and are carrying out mass tree felling.

Construction companies are required to reduce the amount of dust emissions in the air basin during construction by performing water spraying multiple times throughout the day and transferring sand under closed conditions, as well as enclosing construction sites with protective nets. Are these norms being monitored? We observe that they are not often.

The operation of vehicles without catalytic converters, traffic jams, landfills, and mines also contribute to air pollution. In recent days, large-scale fires that have broken out in various regions of the Republic have further exacerbated air pollution.

According to WHO data, air pollution causes around 8 million deaths annually. You can take this as a warning and an alarm. We are dealing with the health of the public and human lives. Such irresponsible behavior from the authorities is condemnable. Millions of dollars are spent on various concerts and festivals, yet this immensely important issue is overlooked by city authorities.

Dear citizens, we must demand that effective measures be taken to reduce the high level of air pollution. It is their obligation, and there is no dodging it."