Report: Trash Will be Exported in Less than a Month

The two firms that agreed to export Lebanon's trash are said to close the deal with the Lebanese government by the end of the current week after presenting a guarantee of $2.5 million each, al-Akhbar daily reported on Tuesday.

“The preliminary contracts with Britain’s Chinook Urban Mining International and Holland’s Howa BV to export the waste will be signed before the end of the week,” said the daily.

“The two firms are supposed to provide a guarantee worth $2.5 million each to the Lebanese government until the submission of documents of transport to whichever countries will receive the trash before signing the deal,” it added.

“Everything is going well so far, and the preparation for exporting the trash have started. We expect the process to kick off in less than a month,” the daily quoted ministerial sources following up on the issue.

Lebanon has been suffering from a waste management crisis since July 2015 when the Naameh landfill that receives the trash of Beirut and Mount Lebanon closed.

Efforts to solve the crisis including a plan that was suggested by Agriculture Minister Akram Shehayyeb failed to reach fruition.

In December, the cabinet approved an export plan after meeting with representatives of the two firms.

The companies still have to sign the agreements with the countries that will receive the garbage.

The exportation plan will include the newly generated trash excluding the piles that were burnt and buried.

The government's failure to find alternatives led to the piling up of garbage on the streets and in random locations, which raised health and environmental concerns and sparked unprecedented street protests against the entire political class.

D.A.

M.T.