Lake Sevan’s future lies beyond its shores

Digital tools, data and new capacities for sustainable management of basin ecosystems

The environmental problems of the Lake Sevan basin have long gone beyond merely maintaining the lake’s water level or preserving fish stocks. It is important to view it as part of an ecosystem that is constantly and naturally interconnected with other ecosystems and human economic activity. Therefore, the condition of the land, pastures, forests, rivers and the economic activities of communities have a major impact on the lake ecosystem. And today, the environmental agenda requires interconnected and systemic solutions.

This agenda also has a clear international framework today: the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP17) will be held in Yerevan from October 19–30, 2026, under the theme Taking Action for Nature.

In Yerevan, the Parties will conduct the first global review of the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, assessing what real progress countries have made toward each of the 23 global targets. In this context, the work being carried out in the Sevan basin is one of the national responses to global commitments, measured not by declarations, but by hectares, data and community incomes.

This very approach is at the core of the UNDP-GEF grant project “Conservation and Sustainable Management of Land Resources and Valuable Ecosystems in the Lake Sevan Basin for Multiple Benefits.” The five-year (2024–2028) project has environmental and socio-economic objectives: simultaneously reducing land degradation, conserving biodiversity and valuable ecosystems, promoting sustainable agriculture and environmentally responsible economic activity.

The project is implemented with funding from the Global Environment Facility through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the “Environmental Project Implementation Unit” SNCO of the Ministry of Environment. WWF Armenia is a partner in the project.

The project targets six enlarged communities in Gegharkunik and Vayots Dzor provinces: Martuni, Vardenis, Shoghakat, Yeghegis, Vayk and Jermuk.

When we talk about human impact on the Sevan basin, we must bear in mind that it is an interconnected chain of activities across multiple sectors, with cause-and-effect links. Within the framework of the project, work was first carried out on spatial planning and data collection. Integrated spatial and land-use plans have been developed for the six target communities. At the same time, assessments and mapping of land degradation, land use, environmental conditions and economic activity have been carried out.

This work makes it possible to understand, already at the planning stage, where the land is most vulnerable, which areas need restoration and what type of use is safer for them.

One lake and many interconnected problems

To achieve the outlined objectives, the project supports the institutions directly responsible for the conservation and management of natural areas by providing the necessary technical equipment and improving their capacities. One important area of this support is improving the efficiency of the management of Sevan National Park.

The management of the Ministry of Environment’s Sevan National Park, covering a total area of approximately 147,456 hectares, requires simultaneously monitoring biodiversity, water quality, land use, forest areas and more.

According to Arayik Hunanyan, Head of the Scientific Research and Cadastre Department of Sevan National Park, the tools provided to the park within the framework of the project are used for biodiversity monitoring, land surveying, boundary clarification and other activities.

Before this support, the park had to use private services when surveying work was required:

“We were unable to carry out surveying work because we did not have the equipment. We had to call in private specialists and use paid services. But now we have our own equipment and can do it ourselves,” Hunanyan says.

Accurate surveying of areas is important for understanding who is responsible for or has jurisdiction over a particular area and what type of use is being carried out there.

The laboratory equipment provided to the park is also directly related to assessing the condition of the ecosystem. Microbiological studies are carried out on the waters of Lake Sevan and the ten rivers flowing into the lake. Coliform and saprophytic bacteria present in the water are studied, and water quality is assessed based on the quantitative data obtained.

The new microscope is particularly important for this work, as the previous equipment, which had been used since the Soviet era, was no longer fit for use.

The park has also been equipped with other technology, allowing it to carry out management more effectively, including a drone, GPS devices, a refrigerator, a camera, a computer and more.

One of the project’s important achievements can be considered the 2-point increase in Sevan National Park’s international Management Effectiveness Tracking Tool (METT) score, which rose from 37 to 39 points. The numerical change may not be large, but it demonstrates improved management in an area where results often take years to achieve. This indicator is directly linked to Target 3 of the Global Biodiversity Framework, which requires not only the expansion of protected areas but also their effective and equitable management. Management effectiveness will be one of the most discussed criteria of the global review expected to take place in Yerevan.

Several hours of monitoring work in just a few minutes

In an area as complex and multi-layered as the Sevan basin, it is difficult to respond quickly to problems using only human resources. This is precisely where the need for technology becomes apparent—to increase work efficiency.

The Eco-Patrol Service of Armenia’s Ministry of Environment is also among the project’s beneficiaries. According to Eduard Karapetyan, Head of the Department for Calculation and Analysis of Damage Caused to Flora and Fauna, tablets and drones make it possible to carry out conservation work more effectively.

A drone, for example, changes the way monitoring operations are carried out in hard-to-reach areas. If inspecting a particular area could previously take several hours, it is now possible to obtain a complete picture of the area within a few minutes.

“This saves both human and financial resources, which can be directed toward making conservation as a whole more effective,” Karapetyan says.

Tablets also make it possible to carry out the necessary measurements on site, obtain a map of the area and quickly proceed to calculating the damage and the procedures that follow.

These tools can be used to detect various environmental violations, from illegal fishing and logging to illegal use of areas, construction or pollution. The equipment significantly improves employees’ work, helps detect violations more quickly, obtain accurate data to ensure damage assessment, or simply monitor an area more effectively.

The project has also provided the capacity to use these tools: two theoretical and practical training courses have been conducted on drones, while initial training was organized for two groups of the Eco-Patrol Service. It is precisely this combination of “equipment plus skills” that gives practical substance to Target 20 of the Global Biodiversity Framework—capacity building and technology transfer—as well as Target 21, concerning accessible and quality data for decision-making.

Solving old problems reveals new needs

Alongside improvements in technical capacities, new problems are being identified that need to be addressed.

This is clearly evident in both the Eco-Patrol Service and Sevan National Park. The Eco-Patrol Service still needs to equip the 25 entry and exit points of Lake Sevan, acquire motorboats for work in water areas, electronic scales and video recording devices. To make more comprehensive use of the capabilities of the drones provided, LiDAR scanning devices and a 4G module are also being considered. A unified biodiversity monitoring system needs to be introduced.

At Sevan National Park, modern measuring instruments, tree inventory and numbering devices, electronic rangefinders, tree height measuring devices and equipment necessary for irrigation work are still needed for fieldwork.

“Modern technologies are important in environmental management because they make it possible to understand more quickly and accurately what is happening in ecosystems. Through drones, GPS systems and other digital tools, it is possible to effectively monitor changes in areas, identify impacts on habitats and respond to them in a timely manner,” says project botanist/agroecology expert Alvina Avagyan.

In an area with an interconnected ecosystem such as the Sevan basin, she says, these tools can contribute not only to the conservation of individual species but also to the protection of their habitats and to making more informed decisions on nature management.

The final results of the UNDP-GEF project are still to be achieved by 2028. The plan is to bring 10,000 hectares of irrigated land and 5,800 hectares of forest under sustainable management, restore 2,200 hectares of degraded forest areas, and improve the management of the entire area of Sevan National Park, including by recruiting new personnel.

The project will also support tourism development by contributing to the effective use of the tourism potential of the target areas, creating new entrepreneurial opportunities and increasing the income generated from them.

Another important objective of the project is the creation and strengthening of ecological corridors to ensure the safe movement of animal species and connectivity between habitats.

This result cannot be achieved through a single project or the work of a single institution. It requires long-term cooperation among communities, state and donor institutions, environmental organizations and local economies. Most importantly, when assessing Sevan’s actual condition, it is important to understand that it is viewed as one integrated system encompassing the land, forests, pastures, rivers, fauna and flora surrounding it and, ultimately, the people living in this area.

In October, the answer to this question will be sought in Yerevan around the tables of COP17, but its real test will take place in the Sevan basin itself—in the areas outside the lake’s boundaries on which the lake’s future depends.