GERMAN STANDARDS ARMENIAN STYLE

Twenty-seven years ago, the river was the source of life, but now...

"How on Earth can a person spoil the river, from which others drink and use?" complains Ilgar Mammadov, who was able to visit the land of his ancestors in the Zangilan district of Azerbaijan after twenty-seven years of separation. He could not believe his eyes. He could not even touch the waters of the river, on the banks of which once stood their house and where he played and fished with his peers in childhood. Originating in Armenia and flowing through the territory of Azerbaijan, the Okhchuchay River is so polluted with industrial waste that it is no longer suitable for irrigation and fishing. Once the river was the source of life for Ilgar's fellow villagers, but now life inevitably leaves it.

For the first time in 27 years, specialists of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan have carried out monitoring on the Okhchuchay River. The results showed that the level of pollution in the river was dangerous. Most of Okhchuchay (83 km) flows through the territory of the Syunik region of Armenia (the historical Azerbaijani region of Zangezur), with a small portion through the recently liberated Zangilan district of Azerbaijan.

After the de-occupation of Azerbaijani lands, in particular Zangilan, Azerbaijani ecologists gained access to local rivers. The analyzes of water samples taken from Okhchuchay in January-March 2021 showed that the river's waters contain a large amount of heavy metals, including copper, molybdenum, manganese, iron, zinc and chromium. On different days, the water in Okhchuchay turns white or yellow. In March, a massive extinction of trout was recorded in the Okhchuchay basin.

A huge share of mineral salts of heavy metals pollutes the environment due to the sewage from the surrounding mining and processing enterprises. This suggests that the reason for all this pollution is non-compliance with environmental standards of one of the largest mining enterprises in Armenia located in the Syunik region, which dumps industrial waste directly into the river without preliminary processing.

High content of heavy metals in water not only destroys the river fauna, but is also extremely dangerous for human health. The use of such water can lead to harmful complications, including digestive disorders, destructive processes in kidneys and bone tissue, diseases of the cardiovascular, nervous and circulatory systems.

The quality of the Okhchuchay water is important for Azerbaijan, since the river flows into the Araz, the second longest river in the South Caucasus and the largest tributary of the Kura. Araz is very important in terms of irrigation of agricultural lands in Azerbaijan. At the same time, given the quality of the water in this river, its use in households and agriculture can lead to extremely negative consequences.

Confessions of Armenian ecologists

Monitoring of the river by Armenian environmental specialists also indicates its deplorable state and the detrimental role of the Syunik copper-molybdenum plant. In 2017, the National Institute of Education of the Ministry of Education and Science of Armenia with the participation of specialists from the V. B. Sochava Institute of Geography of the Siberian branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences carried out an assessment of the ecological state of water bodies in the mining and industrial regions of Syunik. Water quality was assessed in accordance with the EU Water Framework Directive methodology. The assessment confirmed that the water quality near the city of Kajaran dropped from class II to class IV as a result of the ingress of pollutants from the Syunik copper-molybdenum plant through surface, ground- and waste waters. Due to the high content of heavy metals and the increased volume of wastewater discharged into the river by the plant, the potential for self-purification and recovery of the Okhchuchay River is also decreasing.

According to German "standards"

According to official data, until 2019, the German company Cronimet Mining AG has owned most of the plant's shares. The company operated the Kajaran mine, which is the largest in the Caucasus in terms of copper and molybdenum reserves – more than 1 billion tons. The plant mines 24,000 tons of ore and 5,000-6,000 cubic meters of overburden daily. The content of molybdenum and copper in the ore is 0.055% and 0.21%, respectively.

Although the company has already announced the sale of its stake in the plant, it has not taken any major steps to prevent the dumping of pollutants since the plant's operation in 2004. Cronimet Holding was founded in 1980 in Karlsruhe, Germany and is engaged in the production and processing of minerals and metals, as well as logistics, trade and transportation of raw materials for the production of stainless steel. As of 2018, the company's annual turnover was $2.8 billion. The Cronimet Group of Companies is owned by the German Pilarski family of Polish descent. Managing partner of the company is Gunther Pilarsky, who has held this position for 40 years, since the company’s inception.

Remarkably, the pollution of the Okhchuchay River is managed by the same representatives of European countries - Germany and Poland, who like dictating environmental standards to the whole world. Apparently, the phrase “nothing personal, just business” is applied in this case as well. Obviously, Europeans preaching about the observance of environmental protection are ready to destroy the environment themselves for good money.

Secret connections: Cronimet and Armenian politics

Gunther Pilarski does not hide his close and friendly ties with Armenia. He has not only been friends with the Armenian political elite for many years, but since 2006 he has been the honorary consul of Armenia in Baden-Württemberg for his contribution to the development of economic cooperation between the two countries. Information about this can also be found on the website of the company.

An investigation article published in 2019 in the Armenian media outlet Civilnet indicated that Mikael Minasyan, the former Armenian ambassador to the Holy See and the son-in-law of former President Serzh Sargsyan, is a secret co-owner of the Syunik copper-molybdenum plant through third parties. Although the plant's management denied this information, telling reporters that Minasyan did not have any stake in the company, the fact is obvious. The discretion given to Cronimet in Armenia, and the ease with which the German company ignores environmental standards by saving large sums of money in a region far outside Germany, suggest that the information published in Civilnet most likely reflects the truth.

Gunther Pilarsky is also using his connections in Germany to cover up this ‘environmental terror’ in the Caucasus. The German billionaire is also the vice president and sponsor of the German football club Karlsruhe SC. Until 2020, the president of the club was Ingo Wellenreuther, a member of the CDU/CSU faction in the German parliament. Pilarsky is believed to have had political connections with Wellenreuther on several occasions.

In addition, the American The USA Tribune recently published a list of lobbyists hired by Armenia in Germany, which also includes the name of Gunther Pilarsky. The article indicates that until the autumn of 2020, Germany was the main country where the Armenian lobby was actively involved in attracting corrupt politicians.

Silence of the world community

Interestingly, despite such serious facts, international environmental organisations and leading countries of the world still prefer to remain silent. After all, the world community was an eye-witness to not only the Armenian pollution of the Okhchuchay River, but also the facts of burning the houses, trees and forests in the Kalbajar district of Azerbaijan. Unfortunately, these acts of vandalism remain unanswered.

Yet Baku unsuccessfully continues to urge international organisations and leading states to put pressure on Armenia to prevent pollution of the river. The Armenian occupation caused serious environmental damage to the territories of Azerbaijan, including a biological disaster on the Okhchuchay River. The state bodies have satellite images showing the scale of environmental crimes committed by Armenia.

According to preliminary estimates, the damage caused by Armenia to the environment and natural resources of Azerbaijan is estimated at $265.3 billion.

"I hope that everything will be fine. Humanity is not dead yet!", says with a deep sigh Ilgar Mammadov standing on the bank of Okhchuchay. Most likely, every citizen of Azerbaijan, who still hopes that environmental crimes against humanity will not go unanswered, will agree with Ilgar’s opinion.