On 18 June, 2019 a public consultation was held in Bagratashen settlement of Ayrum enlarged community (Tavush region). The parties discussed the environmental impacts of the construction of a new bridge at the Bagratashen border supervision crossing point .

The Bagratashen residents, representatives of the Tunnel Sadd Ariana, bridge design and construction company, Soosung Engineering Co., Ltd, the engineering services providing organization, “Transport Project Implementation Organization” SNCO and Road Department of Georgia attended  the meeting.

Two public consultations had already been held in Bagratashen. During those meetings, the preliminary solutions of the bridge design and the application for preliminary environmental impact assessment were presented and discussed.

At this stage the following main activities are planned: fencing of some parts of the project areas, establishment of offices, organizing of the construction site, involvement of workers and construction staff, etc.

It was mentioned that any owner or business should not suffer as a result of construction. All impacts should be identified during the initial stage of construction to minimize social impact.

It was emphasized that another public consultation would be held in Bagratashen, permanent monitoring would be carried out during the construction phase.