02.09.2003

Toxic waste from Europe

In 1996, after poison barrels from Germany, Italy and Belgium were discovered in Lebanon, a Greenpeace office was opened in the country’s capital. In an interview with Mona Naggar, Greenpeace press officer Basma Badran, talks about her work.

Greenpeace’s work in Lebanon began in 1994, after the discovery of toxic waste containers that had been imported to the country from Germany, Italy and Belgium. In 1996, Greenpeace established an office in Lebanon, with the aim of providing the Lebanese people with access to information on the environment. Since then, the organisation has focussed mainly on pollution caused by the failure to dispose of waste materials properly. Their approach is twofold: firstly, Greenpeace attends to pollution caused by industrial waste products of any kind; secondly, the organisation also focuses on the refuse dumps on the Lebanese coast, on ways of managing the refuse, and on problems relating to waste incineration plants. Greenpeace’s Lebanese Office, the only one in the Arabic-speaking world, is subordinate to the office for the Mediterranean regions, which is based in Malta. Basma Badran is press chief at the Lebanese office. Here, he talks about Lebanese attitudes to the environment, and describes efforts to close down the waste incineration plants – the main causes of the country’s heavy pollution burden.

Currently, you’re focusing on the waste incineration plants, and you’ve also worked to have them closed down. Why are the waste incineration plants a particular problem, and what have you been able to achieve so far?

Basma Badran: We began working in this area in 1997; at that time, the plants were being presented as a solution to the refuse problem. The concept was all wrong, though, because incineration doesn’t eliminate the waste materials; instead, it turns them into ashes. And the toxic effect of these ashes is much greater, because they are deposited over a far wider area. Therefore, we strongly opposed burning the refuse. There were two incineration plants in Beirut: in al-Amrusiyya and in al-Karantina. At our instigation, both of these plants ceased operating. We achieved this by working closely with the local people, who demanded vehemently that the plants be closed down. The alternative to burning rubbish is to separate it. This means transforming organic waste materials into fertiliser, while the remaining refuse is either used again or recycled to make other products. This is the solution we have to go for, because it’s the only real solution to the problem.

There is still one incineration plant for household waste in existence in Lebanon: the Al-Normandie plant. There are plans to convert it into a children’s playground. Waste separation is really a very good system; conversion of the organic waste into fertiliser and recycling or repeated use of the rest. But instead of going with this solution, the American company that was assigned the contract decided to build an incineration plant there. And now they’re burning everything imaginable – and mixing the ashes into the soil of the playground. What’s more, the plant is not licensed by the environment ministry. We are now working to have this plant closed down. In addition, we demand a nationwide strategy to regulate the handling of waste residues. This would have to be based on waste separation, recycling and reprocessing. Incineration plants should be forbidden completely.

What’s your assessment of environmental awareness in Lebanon?

Badran: When I compare the current situation with the way things were ten years ago, I can certainly say that people have become more environmentally aware – quite simply because the problems have become much more acute. Not just for “the environment” as the word used to be understood, i.e. for the trees and the flowers; by now, we’re also talking about our own health. Sometimes people come down with illnesses that can be traced back to severe exposure to chemical residues. Then people naturally start to ask questions. We immediately get in touch with these people – with the inhabitants of the contaminated areas - and provide them with information material. In this connection, we insist on the right to receive information. Every citizen has the right to know which basic materials are being treated in the factories in his or her vicinity, which products are being manufactured, and which waste products are generated there. Only in this way can people know the possible risks to their health – for example, why all their children are suffering from asthma.

What role did the civil war play in exacerbating the environmental problem?

Badran: The refuse dumps on the coast and inland grew during the war. There was absolutely no interest in the environment. The fact that toxic waste was imported to Lebanon is a clear indication of the chaos prevailing at that time. This problem has now been solved: most of this toxic waste has already been returned to Germany and Italy. We are still searching for a few Belgian waste containers, however. Sometimes we get phone calls telling us drums of waste have been found in a field somewhere. We then send some of our young colleagues along to take samples, which we subsequently analyse. In some cases, the residues are not toxic – if, they may turn out to be (organic) fat residues from a pastry shop, for example. But if it turns out that we’re dealing with mineral oil residues, we take action immediately.

Translation: Pat Lanagan

If you are interested in the work of Greenpeace Lebanon have a look at their website