Government delays solving waste crisis

The Lebanese cabinet committee charged with solving the waste crisis in Lebanon has not acted yet, despite the four-month-old garbage crisis in the north of the country, Human Rights Watch said today. . The crisis has led to an accumulation of garbage on the streets and their burning in the open air.

In the absence of central government action, the Minister of the Environment has proposed a short-term solution that has aroused popular anger. The ministerial committee should immediately review the roadmap presented by the Ministry of the Environment on June 3, 2019, which aims to implement the new law on solid waste management and submit a final draft to the Council of Ministers which protects everyone's right to health.

"The government had four months to find a solution to the waste crisis in the north, but it is still slow to adopt semi-temporary measures," said Lama Fakih, interim director of Human Rights Watch for the Middle East. East and North Africa. Waste in the country. "

On April 5, the owner of the open and unregulated landfill of Adawi, used for 17 years by the Minieh-Denniyeh, Kura, Zgharta and Bishri districts, closed the landfill.

Local media reported that some northerners were burning garbage on sidewalks and sometimes in closed streets, although this practice is illegal and endangers the health of about 330,000 people. An elderly woman fainted after inhaling smoke from burning garbage in the city of Sir al-Dinniyeh, media reports said.

A survey conducted by Human Rights Watch in 2017 found that burning garbage threatened the health of neighboring residents. Residents have reported health issues including COPD, cough, throat irritation, skin diseases and asthma. Air pollution from open burning waste, heart disease and emphysema has also been linked and can expose people to carcinogens.