Dismantling in “Sevan” National Park will be ongoing

At a government session, along with other issues, the matter of dismantling twenty-three buildings and structures in the territory of “Sevan” National Park was also discussed. To learn some details, Top News spoke with Karen Mnatsakanyan, Director of “Sevan” National Park.

According to the Director, the phenomenon of demolishing illegal structures within the park is not new. From 2020 to the present, around 150 such illegal buildings and structures have been dismantled and this year alone the number of such structures has reached approximately 30.

According to Simonyan, the structures are mostly movable cabins, while stone buildings are comparatively fewer within the territory of Sevan National Park.

“Since the cabins are movable, whenever we issue a notice, people remove them from the area. It’s a somewhat easier process,” the Director explained in a conversation with us.

How did the buildings end up on the territory of a national park?

According to the Director, these are buildings and structures constructed in earlier periods, some of which have even been privatized. Buildings built during the Soviet era have ownership rights, which creates complications for dismantling.

As a priority, they are trying to address the dismantling of structures adjacent to the lake. As Mnatsakanyan explained, these are mainly structures located below 1901.5 meters above sea level. There are also buildings that, due to the rise in the lake’s level, have already gone under water.

According to the Director, it is not possible to eliminate problems accumulated over thirty or forty years so easily. They are trying to do this gradually. They have set themselves the task of dismantling more illegal buildings and structures each year than in the previous year.

The Director also spoke about the difficulties. According to him, first and foremost, financial resources are needed to carry out dismantling works on such a scale.

“Removing this construction waste from the territory is a problem. it is a work that involves quite significant expenses,” the Director emphasized, adding that although this falls within the competencies of the Sevan community, they also support the community in every possible way. “Since Sevan National Park has its own territory, naturally it concerns it as well and it also supports the community, and there are cases when we dismantle it with our own forces,” Karen Mnatsakanyan noted.

It should be recalled that few days ago during a government session, Prosecutor General of Armenia Anna Vardapetyan announced that a number of petitions had been sent to the Sevan community and to the Sevan National Park SNCO to dismantle illegally constructed buildings and structures located on 34 land plots in the shores of Lake Sevan below the absolute elevation mark and to restore the land to its previous appearance.

“The works are progressing quite slowly. As of this moment, buildings and structures have been fully dismantled on three plots. With regard to the remaining plots, administrative proceedings have been initiated and 23 demolition decisions have been made, which have not yet been implemented. But we will continue to exercise oversight and if the works are not carried out, we will seek through judicial procedure to compel the performance of the demolition works,” Prosecutor General Anna Vardapetyan said.

According to Anna Vardapetyan, the properties belong to former and current officials. “Naturally, these are well-known properties; one is Harsnaqar, one is a mansion belonging to former Police Chief Vladimir Gasparyan, one of the properties belongs to Norair Panosyan and there is one property that belongs to Sasun Mikayelyan.”