It was reported that 5 individuals had entered the “Omonquton” national nature park in Samarkand illegally and caused damage to trees and plants. The Prosecutor's Office has announced that a criminal case has been initiated regarding the situation here.
The territory of the “Yolsoy” section of this national nature park saw illegal road construction by a group of citizens, resulting in the scraping of 869 square meters of soil and the burying of 1427 square meters of land, leading to the total destruction of 2693.9 cubic meters of protected area including 1112 plants of 7 types and 1479 plants of 5 types listed in the Uzbekistan “Red Book” of endangered and vanishing species, as well as the cutting and damage of 64 trees and shrubs of 8 types.
As a result, the nature was inflicted with a damage worth 1 billion 115 million 907 thousand UZS.
The spokesperson for the Ministry of Ecology, Environmental Protection, and Climate Change reported that these citizens entered the “Yolsoy” section area, a former rest camp, without permission and without any documents using excavators and bulldozers.
The park's management warned that the nature park is a protected natural area, unauthorized entry, construction, and excavation are not allowed, and demanded that they leave the area. Despite the warnings, the citizens continued to enter the park illegally and caused significant damage to several trees and plants.
Concerning this situation, the Prosecutor's Office of the Samarkand region initiated a criminal case under Article 204 (violation of the protected natural area regime) Part 2, and the investigation is in progress.
The General Prosecutor's Office exercises control over the criminal case investigation.
The Criminal Code provides that deliberate destruction of or damage to protected natural areas or objects, if it causes substantial harm or other serious consequences, shall be punishable by a fine of 50 to 100 times the minimum monthly wage or by restriction of liberty for a term of 2 to 5 years or imprisonment for up to 5 years.
