ERMC/AUA.: State of the Environment
Armenia
Waste Management
Copyright 1997 Kurkjian Images
In the years
of intensive economic development of Armenia (1985-1990), the total amount
of generated waste was 36.7 mln. tons. The Ministry of Nature Protection
on yearly basis is submitted by the standard registration forms from industrial
enterprises on the total amount of generated solid waste.
The most important documents related to the administration and implementation
of waste management are the following:
the Law on Securing the Sanitary Epidemiological Safety of the Population
of the Republic of Armenia, adopted 12/12/1992. The distribution of
the duties, responsibilities and rights between authorities are stated
in the law. The more detailed regulations are given in the Decision No
518 on the Provision of State Hygienic and Counter Epidemiological Servicing,
passed October 12, 1993.
the directive of the President of the Republic of Armenia issued January
15, 1996, regarding the Governmental Structure and the Setting the Regulation
of the Activities. The regulation states the duties and rights of marzpet
(the chief administrator of the province).
the Law on Local Self Management (07/22/1996). The responsibilities
of the head of the Community including the responsibilities in the field
of waste management are stated in the law.
the decision of the Government (No 51, 14.3.1997) concerning possessions
of the communities. By this decision, e.g. landfills were transferred to
the ownership of the communities.
The main law concerning privatization of waste management services is
the Law on the 1996-97 Program of Handing-out of State Enterprises and
Uncompleted Constructions, adopted by the Parliament in 03/20/1996
and ratified by the President in 04/25/1996
The collection, transportation and treatment of waste as well as data
collection concerning waste are regulated as follows:
the decision N o 405 (17/10/1997), the Prime Minister of the Republic
of Armenia approved the Regulation of the Ministry of Environment and Underground
Resources (now Ministry of Nature Protection) concerning state inventory
of wastes. The aim of the decision is to collect information for the regulatory
issues of collection, transportation and disposal of waste including transboundary
waste movement and waste importing-exporting.
in 1997, the Minister of the Environment approved the Instruction
Manual on the registration, taxation and safe disposal of waste, according
to which the solid waste was classified.
the Governmental Decision No 92, Measures to Secure the Implementation
of the Program on the Social Economical Development of the Republic of
Armenia for 1996, passed on 04/02/1996. According to the decision,
the new regulation on urban waste collection, removal and safe disposal
from the settlements was prepared by the all-national organization concerned
with community related issues, the "Communtnt" State Enterprise.
The Governmental Decision No 97, passed December 8, 1995, sets the regulation
on the in-country importing and transporting of hazardous wastes.
Armenia is not yet a Party Member of the Basel Convention. Currently,
measures are underway to fit the domestic legislation with the provisions
of the Convention mentioned, and necessitate the technical maintenance
of the activities dealing with the waste importing and transportation.
As per the provisions of Basel Convention, within the commonwealth of
Newly Independent States, an agreement (04/12/1996) which defines the basic
hazardous groups of wastes was composed, together with the listing of the
harmful impacts.
There is a temporary Agreement between the Republic of Armenia and the
European Union which follows the Basel Convention provisions. The section
11 of the Agreement stipulates the conditions for the country which has
not joined the Convention, but concerns with the transboundary waste movement
regulations.
Waste Management - Municipal
Solid Waste. - Industrial Waste. - Impact
of Waste on Human Health. - Clasification of
Waste. - Existing Waste Management Structure.
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