One of the
world's oldest civilization, Armenia once included Mount Ararat, which
biblical tradition identifies as the Armenia is a landlocked country in
Asia Minor, between the Black and Caspian Seas, bordered on the north
and east by Georgia and Azerbaijan and on the south and west by Iran and
Turkey.
The terrain is mostly mountainous and flat, with fast flowing rivers and
few forests but with many trees. The climate is highland continental:
hot summers and cold winters. The land rises to 4,095 m above sea-level
at Mount Aragats, and no point is below 400 m. Mount Ararat, one of the
national symbols of Armenia, is the highest mountain in the region and
used to be part of Armenia up until it was given to Turkey by the Soviet
Union according to the Treaty of Kars in 1921.
Pollution from toxic chemicals such as DDT is not helping the already
poor soil quality in many parts of the country.
Armenia is trying to address its environmental problems. It has
established a Ministry of Nature Protection and introduced taxes for air
and water pollution and solid waste disposal, whose revenues are used
for environmental protection activities. Armenia is interested in
cooperating with other members of the Commonwealth of Independent States
(CIS, a group of 12 former Soviet republics) and with members of the
international community on environmental issues. The Armenian Government
is working toward closing the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant as soon as
alternative energy sources are identified. |