PRESS RELEASE
November 16, 2006

SAVING ARMENIA ONE TREE AT A TIME

ATP Takes on Armenia's Escalating Deforestation Crisis, Works to Reverse Deforestation By Encouraging Environmental Rejuvenation in Rural Villages

WATERTOWN, MA--Today, more than 40 percent of Armenians, living just north of oil-rich lands, burn wood to survive--a terrible necessity contributing to the rapid deforestation of an entire country. To prevent this environmental catastrophe, Armenia Tree Project (ATP), a US and Armenia-based NGO, has adopted a practical, but ingenious solution: “backyard nurseries.”

A family in Aygut village that grows trees as part of ATP's successful backyard nursery program; they use part of income earned growing tree seedlings for ATP to send a family member to college.

ATP's Backyard Nursery Micro-Enterprise Program has two aims: to help combat rural poverty by teaching villagers to grow and sell tree seedlings, and to create environmentally sustainable solutions to depleting natural resources. Working side-by-side with ATP, Armenians have planted 1.25 million trees over the past 12 years. And on average, each participating family grows up to 1,000 seedlings each year.

According to the World Bank, forest covers only eight percent of Armenia, down from 12 percent just 15 years ago. At the current rate of deforestation, Armenia could become a desert in just 20 years, and leading environmental organizations such as World Wildlife Fund and Conservation International have already declared Armenia as an environmental “hotspot” for biodiversity under threat.

“Armenia's environment is at a grave tipping point, and if the threat is not contained, the impact on the country's forest and natural resources will be irreversible. The combination of illegal logging, driven by extensive commercial enterprises, and subsistence logging for heating and cooking fuel, is accelerating deforestation in Armenia. Armenia must find the balance between economic growth and sustainable management of natural resources,” noted ATP Executive Director Jeff Masarjian.

ATP's backyard nursery program gives each partner family approximately $280 USD a year in additional income--in effect doubling the average household income for rural families. For example, this Fall ATP is purchasing 270,000 seedlings from 330 families in five villages, and in addition, will pay villagers roughly $200 USD to plant the seedlings. This dual strategy generates incomes while promoting environmental sustainability.

“But fighting poverty with backyard nurseries is only step one in reversing deforestation. Weaning villagers off their dependence on wood for fuel is critical,” Masarjian adds.
With the additional income earned from backyard nurseries and other eco-related enterprises, villagers can better afford to switch to alternative fuel and start taking personal responsibility for saving their nation's forests.

Five families in the village of Aygut are currently using natural gas instead of wood for heating and cooking. As a result, each family preserves about five trees, some as old as 60 years and mostly of highly valuable oak--a demonstration of ATP's “tree by tree” approach to safeguarding Armenia's ecological security on the local level.

In addition to the aforementioned programs, ATP contributes to the villages' basic health and social services, providing food, clothing, computers, school renovations, and other necessities through NGO partnerships.

“Through public education, providing economic opportunity, and sustainable growth solutions, ATP is helping Armenia reverse the devastating effects of deforestation. But more environmental education and sustainable growth initiatives are needed to preserve Armenia's natural resources for future generations,” said Masarjian.

ABOUT ARMENIA TREE PROJECT

Armenia Tree Project (ATP), a grassroots-supported non-profit organization (NGO) based in Watertown and Yerevan, conducts vitally important environmental projects in Armenia's impoverished and deforested zones and seeks support in advancing its reforestation mission. Since 1994, ATP has made enormous strides in combating desertification in the biologically diverse but threatened Caucasus region. Over 1.25 million trees have been planted and restored, and hundreds of jobs have been created for Armenians in seasonal tree-regeneration programs. For more information, please visit www.ArmeniaTree.org.

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