Landlocked Armenia has become a significant fish producer, generating over 25,000 tons annually—rivaling exports from its coastal neighbor Georgia. Nearly half of this production heads to international markets, primarily Russia. However, this success story masks a growing environmental crisis in the country’s agricultural heartland.
The Ararat Valley, often called Armenia’s food basket, is central to this challenge. Although the Valley makes up only 4 percent of Armenia’s total area, it contains a significant portion of its arable land.
Since 2008, the government designated fish farming a priority sector, approximately 200 fish farms have sprung up in the region, with 80 percent concentrated in the Ararat and Armavir provinces. These farms utilize the valley’s underground water reserves, which has had a significant impact on traditional water usage patterns.
“If you continuously pour water into a glass from one side and take out more than you pour in from the other side, eventually your glass will empty,” warns Inga Zarafyan, founder of EcoLur, an environmental NGO. “That’s exactly how our Ararat Valley basin will become empty.”
The numbers support her concern. While the valley’s renewable underground water resource is 1.1 billion cubic meters annually, experts estimate actual water consumption at 1.6 billion cubic meters—far exceeding sustainable levels. The Ministry of Environment admits it lacks precise data on actual water consumption, highlighting a troubling gap in oversight.
The consequences are already visible. By 2016, the area of underground waters with positive pressure had halved compared to 1984 levels. Fish farming now accounts for an astounding 77 percent of annual water usage in the valley, fundamentally disrupting historical water distribution patterns that once balanced household, irrigation, and drinking water needs.
Impact on agriculture
The transformation has hit agriculture particularly hard. Where farmers once relied on gravity-fed underground water systems, 70 percent of irrigation now requires pumps, significantly increasing costs and complexity. The strain has become so severe that authorities have resorted to drawing water from Lake Sevan, Armenia’s largest freshwater body, to supplement irrigation needs.
The water crisis extends to surface water sources as well. The Metsamor River and Lake Akna, which previously irrigated approximately 8,000 hectares of land, have nearly dried up. The Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant also uses water from the artesian basin and the Sevjur River for cooling purposes. Despite decreased river flow, government officials maintain that the nuclear facility faces no water supply issues.
In Sis village, which hosts the highest concentration of fish farms, the situation is dire. Of the village’s 1,460 hectares, 900 are now occupied by fish farms. “We don’t have a program. We don’t have an irrigation network,” says Zhora Ghazaryan from the Sis village administration. “The pastures are in bad condition, salinized… The Soviet-era irrigation infrastructure has collapsed.”
Across the Ararat and Armavir regions, 30 communities face serious drinking and irrigation water shortages. In Ararat province, 13 percent of arable land lies fallow, while in Armavir province, the figure reaches 38 percent. Many residents must purchase drinking water as tap water has become unsuitable for consumption.
Regulatory challenges
Allegations of corruption and mismanagement complicate the situation. Media reports have highlighted questionable water use permits and connections between fish farm operators and officials. The former Minister of Environment, Aram Harutyunyan, faces criminal charges related to these issues.
Climate change adds another layer of vulnerability to the region, with increasing temperatures and drought frequencies threatening to exacerbate water scarcity. Experts warn that Armenia could lose 15-30 percent of its water resources under worst-case scenarios.
Solutions have been proposed, including closed-circuit water systems for fish farms, rehabilitation of irrigation systems, and implementation of drip irrigation. While Armenia possesses four times more water resources than it currently uses, inefficient management and oversight have created artificial scarcity.
As of January 2024, new regulations requiring fish farms to operate with closed circulation systems face legal challenges, with the matter currently suspended in court. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has taken a hard line, stating, “If they’re going to close, let them close,” regarding fish farms that can’t meet the new requirements.
As Armenia grapples with these challenges, the solution may require more than technical fixes. As Zarafyan notes, “We have a security issue—a water security issue. This security problem needs to be solved in a completely different way.”
The future of Armenia’s water security—and with it, the country’s agricultural heritage—hangs in the balance, requiring comprehensive reform.
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