Do not spoil Nature!
March 21 marks the World Forestry Day.
"Forests have invaluable environmental, social and economic importance. They help maintain the temperature of the planet, provide oxygen, preserve water resources, and provide people with food and a healthy environment. Forests provide the essential habitat for most of Earth's species of plants, animals, and microorganisms," reads a statement issued by Teghut Protection Group.
"To fight global warming, the international community aims to turn 33% of planet Earth's ground layer into forest by 2012. UN member states have made corresponding agreements and are carrying out international commitments, including the Framework Convention on Climate Change, a UN Convention on Biodiversity and a UN Convention to Combat Desertification.
Despite these global processes and the fact that the Republic of Armenia has ratified the above-mentioned conventions, the country's forested areas have gone from 12% to 6-7% in the last 20 years. This reduction continues day by day due to illegal logging and improper management and control. Thousands of hectares of forests in land use documents are represented as having other statuses and are used for other purposes. As a result of such processes, the country's laws and international commitments are being violated," reads the statement noting that mining is realized in Armenia at the expense of forests and citing Teghut forest as an example.
"A country of merely 30,000 square kilometers cannot promote large-scale mining and simultaneously ensure a healthy environment, safe agriculture and tourism," reads the statement.
