25 December 2010, 17:33
First in Armenia Dolphinarium opened in Yerevan
On December 24, Yerevan held an opening ceremony of the first Armenian Dolphinarium. Ecologists protest against its operation, believing that it is dangerous.
Four dolphins, two seals and one sea lion were brought to Yerevan from Odessa. Ecologists assert that the dolphins, while living in the pool 5 meters deep and having diameter of 18 meters, may experience stress and become aggressive and dangerous for spectators.
About 50 Armenian and international organizations speak against the opening and operation of the Dolphinarium; therefore, a peaceful protest action was held in parallel with the opening ceremony, the "PanARMENIAN.Net" reports.
According to Ruben Khachatryan, Director of the Preservation Fund of Wildlife and Cultural Values, a lot of chlorine is added into the water to make it blue, but dolphins get blind from this substance, the "Azatutyun" (Liberty) Radio reports.
Another problem is food. According to Elsik Azizyan, chairman of the NGO "Pro Paws", they plan to feed dolphins with imported frozen fish, which is unacceptable.
Andrei Kislovskiy, Director of the Dolphinarium, has noted that in any country opening of such entertainment centres is accompanied by ecologists' protest actions - it is quite a common phenomenon, the "Armenia Today" reports.
