On April 5, 2006, the CRD/TI Armenia received an alert about the illegal felling of trees on the territory in the belonging of the Byurakan Observatory of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia.byurakan.jpg

According to the information received, the management of the Observatory deemed it necessary to organize trimming of trees on the aforementioned territory and assigned the local residents the responsibility of arranging "a trimming campaign". Among the trees trimmed by the end of March, only 23 were young oaks; the rest of the trees, according to the experts, were trimmed in a non-professional manner and can never be restored.

CRD/TI Armenia reported the incident to the State Environmental Inspectorate of the RoA Ministry of Nature Protection and the Department of State Interest Protection of the RoA Prosecutor's Office. In its response letter, the State Environmental Inspectorate informed that the materials with regard to the illegal felling on the territory in the belonging of the Byurakan Observatory of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia were referred to the Prosecutor's Office of Aragatsotn Marz.

At the regular meeting of the scientific board of the Observatory, the issue discussed by the management was not the consequences of the illegal actions and the responsibility for such, but the question who sent the alert and involved the authorities. This gives a cause to presume that those people may be held responsible.