Environmental Agency rejects MP's statement saying gold mining badly affects population of snow leopards

AKIPRESS.COM - Gold mining scares wild animals in Sarychat-Ertash Reserve and negatively affects the population of snow leopards, MP Baktybek Turusbekov (Bir Bol party) said at the session of the parliamentary committee on fuel and energy complex and subsoil use on discussion of government's information about the process of execution of resolutions of the Parliament concerning the Kumtor project and a strategic agreement on environmental protection and investment development signed by the government and the Centerra Gold Inc.
According to him, about 4,000 species of snow leopard remained in the world today.
"Except for gold and money, there are people. Every time when we dig a gold, they escape. I have information, there are only 4,000 species only in the world," the parliamentarian said.
However, Deputy Director of the State Agency for Environmental Protection and Forestry Eldiyar Sheripov showed on a map that gold mining in Kumtor does not affect the population of animals.
"The Sarychat-Ertash reserve was founded in 1995. There are no trees there, this is a very high settlement. Snow leopards and mountain goats live there. Before the territory was 72,000 hectares. In 2010, with the assistance of international organizations and members of the Parliament the habitat was expanded to 149,000 hectares. To date, the territory expanded by 77,000 ha," Sheripov noted.
On the map, he showed that the nearest mining plant of Kumtor is located 8 km 900 meters from the reserve.
"Kumtor does not affect the population of snow leopards at all," he claimed.
MP Kojobek Ryspayev (SDPK party) said this issue has gone political.