We, the Czech NGO Arnika, have been working in Armenia since 2009. In cooperation with our local partners, the NGO Center for Community Mobilisation and Support (CCMS) and independent media Ecolur, we are mapping industrial pollution, providing environmental data to local communities, helping them to protect their rights for healthy environment and outline possible green development of the of Lori and Syunik Regions.
As in our home country, the Czech Republic - our strategic goal is simple: to develop scientific evidence, strengthen civil society and build a sustainable future for all. This work is based on the principles of environmental democracy and internationally accepted values. That is, primarily the general right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment, defined as one of the basic human rights by the United Nations, and the people's right to know and decide about the related issues such as the environmental impacts of mining and industry - as anchored in, for example, the UNECE Aarhus Convention.
In our work, we are more than open to cooperation with municipalities, local public institutions, governmental and non-governmental stakeholders, and we are committed to providing open and truthful information about the results and objectives of our work. Our work is based on stable cooperation with trustworthy local partners and contacts with the local civil society.
Recently, however, allegations have appeared i questioning the validity of our work. Started by tabloid media and without providing any evidence, several articles insinuated that Arnika serves Azerbaijani interests. These texts generally claim that our activities support Azerbaijan's expansionist tendencies, particularly in relation to the Syunik Corridor, by denigrating Armenian industry and ore mining.
We reject these allegations. However, as they relate to the activities we are undertaking in Armenia with the support of the Czech Foreign Ministry's Transition Programme and in close cooperation with multiple partners, we feel it is appropriate to comment on the media claims and set the record straight.
Our work in Armenia is long-term and has very clear objectives. It maps and informs citizens about pollution in industrial regions, often caused by mining and mineral processing. For example, as part of our long-term work, we have published a comprehensive study of the environmental and health impacts of gold mining and processing in the Ararat, Kotayk, Lori and Aragatsotn regions. Our findings are consistent with other scientific work from around the world showing that gold mining is associated with exposure of local populations to hazardous levels of heavy metals (e.g. here).
We respond to requests from Armenian civil society and specific communities in the regions where we work. For example, our analysis gives Armenian citizens concerned about pollution in their immediate environment new tools to defend their rights - based on expertly assessed, objectively verifiable data.
Arnika's work is designed to objectively help the countries in which it takes place by supporting citizens in outlining solutions to environmental problems with their significant and costly externalities. In the long term, such externalities generally harm not only individuals in polluted areas, for example, but also public health and the natural heritage of the respective countries as a whole.
Arnika is a strictly non-political organization. However, as far as Armenia is concerned, we have publicly condemned the Azerbaijani invasion of Nagorno-Karabakh in 2023, and launched a fundraising campaign to help people who had been forced to flee the areas invaded by Azerbaijani forces.
We look forward to working with our Armenian colleagues, and the many opportunities to interact with communities threatened by industrial and mining pollution assure us that this is meaningful work.
