- 17
- Dec.
- 2024
On Tuesday, December 17, the pressing matter of managing post-war debris will be discussed at the Council of Ministers. Among the key agenda items is the monumental task of handling millions of tons of rubble, and the unclear stance of the Caretaker Minister of Public Works, Ali Hamiyeh. Despite a request for clarification from his media advisor, it was stated that the minister was unavailable for comment, leaving his intentions uncertain.
Recent Israeli airstrikes have caused unprecedented destruction across Lebanon, affecting regions such as Beirut’s southern suburb, southern Lebanon, the Beqaa (Baalbeck-Hermel) and Nabatiyeh. Although exact figures are still uncertain, estimates suggest that 50 to 100 million tons need to be managed. The urgency of addressing this issue is compounded by Lebanon's past failures in debris management. In 2006, rubble from the war with Israel was recklessly dumped into the sea, resulting in severe ecological damage and irreversible harm to coastal ecosystems.
Recycling or Landfilling?
This time, the Ministry of Environment has issued clear guidelines early on to prevent past mistakes from being repeated. It emphasizes the need for systematic sorting, treatment and recycling before the final disposal of materials at designated sites. The goals are multiple: protecting marine environments, preserving soil quality, limiting pollutant spread and, most importantly, establishing a circular economy with recovered materials. In fact, concrete, steel, stone and even glass from rubble can be reused in road construction, cinder block production or the manufacturing of everyday items.
However, despite these clearly articulated environmental and economic guidelines, Hamiyeh’s statement before a previous Council of Ministers meeting — suggesting that “the southern suburb’s rubble should be disposed of at a site near the Costa Brava coastal dump” — raises concerns about a repeat of the 2006 marine landfilling, which caused severe ecological repercussions. Should this approach be adopted, it would directly contradict the Ministry of Environment’s stance and the opinions of many experts, engineers, ecologists and civil society organizations.
Nevertheless, viable solutions abound. Researchers from the American University of Beirut (AUB), led by Professor Issam Srour, are already working on tangible plans to recycle rubble, transforming waste into valuable resources, reducing the need for new quarries and protecting the environment. Lebanese engineers interviewed by This is Beirut emphasize the technical feasibility of sorting and recycling. The steps are straightforward: manually or mechanically separate materials (concrete, steel, glass), crush and reprocess the concrete into aggregates for construction, sell the steel to recycling companies or reuse glass and other recyclable materials.
The outcome of the Council of Ministers’ meeting is eagerly awaited, despite prevailing uncertainties. A sustainable approach aligned with the Ministry of Environment’s guidelines and insights from local and international experts could steer Lebanon away from repeating past errors. A purposive approach to this rubble would not only mitigate the ecological impact of reconstruction but also create a new economic sector, generating jobs and valuable resources.
If, however, the easier solution of marine landfilling were chosen, the country would not only risk further jeopardizing its coastline and biodiversity but would also send a strong signal to international observers that it is capable of repeating the same mistake. This would underscore that Lebanon’s governance remains unchanged, despite years of repeated calls for structural reforms to address the country’s multifaceted crises.
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