Anti-flood measures will also be considered free water use in Armenia

ArmInfo. The RA Ministry of Environment, together with its government partners, has carried out a number of works to identify the existing problems during flood  risk management, prevention, emergency rescue and rehabilitation  operations and to find appropriate solutions to them. It has been  noted that the implementation of urgent rescue and rehabilitation  measures during such disasters is hindered by the requirement for a  water use permit for the implementation of certain works.

This problem became evident during the floods of the Aghstev and Debed  rivers in 2024. In order to eliminate the problem, it has been  envisaged that the implementation of anti-flood measures will also be  considered free water use, for which a separate water use permit will  not be required.

The RA Deputy Minister of Environment Ara Mkrtchyan presented for  debate the amendments being on Making Amendments and Addenda to RA  Water Code and informed about the abovementioned new regulations. The  issue was debated in the first reading at the NA regular sitting.

The next regulation is aimed at extending the term of the  Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP) license. Under the current  regulation, in case of extension of the term of the HPP license, the  water user does not submit an application for extension of the term  of the water use permit to the authorized body, but mechanically the  water use permit is considered extended, equivalent to the term of  the license. As a result, the authorized body is deprived of the  opportunity to assess compliance with the terms, requirements and  applicable legal acts of the issued water use permit. The draft  stipulates that in case of extension of the term of the license for  the production of electricity, the water use permit is not considered  extended. It is extended in accordance with the procedure established  by law.

The next change refers to the consideration of applications for water  use permits from rivers that are spawning grounds for the Red Book  and endemic fish species. It has been established that applications  are rejected if there is no positive experimental conclusion on the  impact on the environment. A legal basis has also been provided for  the development of a methodology for determining the degree of burden  on water resources.

The volume of renewable groundwater resources in the Ararat Valley  and its distribution according to priorities have been determined.  Currently, the law stipulates an annual renewable water volume of 1.1  billion cubic meters, which does not correspond to reality.  It is  being reduced to 926 million cubic meters. The reduced volume of  water resources will be distributed among water users in the Ararat  Valley, according to priority areas and quantities of water use. The  calculation of the established water use volumes was carried out  based on the information provided by the relevant bodies on the  actual and potential demand for water for drinking, domestic,  agricultural, industrial and fish farming purposes in the Ararat and  Armavir marzes/regions, as well as on the current water use permits  and the information provided by the relevant bodies.

In Q&A session, reference was made to the feasibility of additional  water intake from Sevan, steps were taken towards stabilizing the  water resources of the Ararat Basin, the process of distributing  water quantities, the preservation and effective use of national  water resources, and other issues were discussed.

In his co-report, Davit Danielyan informed about the endorsement of  the Standing Committee on Territorial Administration, Local  Self-Government, Agriculture and Environment Protection.