YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 28, NOYAN TAPAN. Since early 2007, the level of Lake Sevan has risen by 63 cm and currently makes 1,898.86 meters. The RA minister of environmental protection Aram Harutyunian said at the September 28 press conference held in connection with 100 days of his tenure that this year, water has been let out of Lake Sevan since June and the water release from the lake amounted to 144.4 mln cubic meters as of September 26. Out of 95 ha of forest areas covered with water due to a rise in the lake's level, 72 ha has been cleaned. According to the minister, in 2007, state budget allocations for increasing the number of endemic fish, including summer trout, grew by 20 million drams (about 58 thousand dollars) to 29 million 995 thousand drams. This year 15,119 young fishes over 4 grams and 84 thousand newly-hatched ones have been released into the lake. A. Harutyunian said that the environmental protection inspection of the ministry conducted checks of 519 economic entities and revealed 492 violations. With the aim of eliminating these violations, 198 instructions were given, 347 acts on administrative fines of the total amount of 22.2 bln drams and 118 protocols on damage done to nature of the total amount of 49 mln drams were compiled. 29.2 mln drams was transferred to the state budget as a result of imposing penalties.

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