Lebanon’s 4.3 million-population generates close to 1.44 million tons of municipal solid waste annually and an estimated yearly volume of 250.3 million cubic meters of sewage, according to a Ministry of Environment report. Industrial facilities contributed 189,000 tons of the waste in 2001, two percent of which was considered hazardous.
The country’s surface, coastal and ground waters remain untreated from industrial, domestic and agricultural effluents. Moreover, soil and land areas are being disfigured by the presence of more than 250,000 hectares of cultivated lands, 64 industrial zones, 720 quarries, 520,000 buildings, 22,000 kilometers of roads and 1,600 gas stations.
Despite the availability of water resources in Lebanon, the water supply and wastewater sector does not produce satisfactory services for the majority of the population. Lebanon’s most current environmental concerns include air pollution in Beirut, industrial waste incineration, waste management, disposal of raw sewage, oil spills and the pollution of coastal waters. — (menareport.com)
© 2002 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
