US Ambassador visits Minister of Environmenet

The US ambassador to Lebanon David Hill met with the ministers of economy, labor, and environment and stressed the importance of improving economic indicators. The Minister of Environment, Mohammed Mashnook introduced to the ambassador the 5 key projects the ministry is working on and he pledged support the MoE in the implementation of an integrated strategy for the management of solid waste: strategy includes the rehabilitation of 700 landfill sites for $US 50 million. The ambassador also indicated support for a master plan on slaughterhouse management was being prepared that also includes the management of waste from slaughterhouses, and modernizing the environment standards.

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Council of State halts the construction of the Qaysmana dam

The construction of the Qaysmana dam in Hammana has been halted by the council of the state. The residents of Hammana are worried that environmental, educational, and health factors will be overlooked for political reasons in the next round of talks. Studies have shown that the dam will reduce the water quantity. The designs of the dam do not seem to take into consideration safety issues which will make the town of Hammana vulnerable in case of damage or destruction of the dam.

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Environmental Minister promises to study suggestions of Naameh Landfill

The Prime Minister, and Ministers of Agriculture, Finance, Interior, and president of CDR with Lebanese Environmental Movement and the members of the close Naame landfill campaign. The government officials listened to the group’s position over the issue. The movement went over the national strategy and provided various studies on it. They also requested an environmental study of the land fill to investigate the various levels of pollution.

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Environmental impact of developing Lebanon’s oil sector

A closed roundtable session sponsored by the ministry environment gathered the various stakeholders of the oil sector to discuss environmental challenges of oil drilling. They went over various issues such as: legislation, emergency authority, environmental data, and economic issues.

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10 year interest free loan to buy small scale solar systems

The photovoltaic cell market support project is funded by a grant from the UNDP to the Ministry of Environment with the overall aim to establish small and decentralized units of renewable energy in Lebanon. The program offers 10-year interest free loans to buy small scale solar systems that are available in the local market. The director of the Lebanese Center for Energy Conservation Pierre Khoury explained that the project aims to develop legislative frameworks, pilot projects to encourage the citizens to uptake solar technology, and provide technical training. This program follows the solar water heater market support project which was a big success in Lebanon.

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