Lake Sevan faces a new threat - pollution with microplastics.
Bardukh Gabrielyan, Head of the Scientific Center of Zoology and Hydroecology, National Academy of Sciences of Armenia, has told ArmInfo that the condition of the rivers running into the Sevan leaves much to be desired. For instance, the river Masrik is polluted with mining waste. Such factors as pollution with household and organic waste also have a negative impact on the water resources.
"I would not say that the pollution of the lake exceeds the maximum allowable concentration. But the fact that the lake is being polluted is beyond any doubt. First of all, the matter concerns household waste. The thing is that plastic items decay in the course of time, turning into microplastics, which is rather dangerous. It can penetrate into the human body through the food chains and cause rather serious diseases," Gabrielyan said.
The expert also pointed out that Armenia lacks any cleaning stations that can clean the water at the biological level.