Marine environmental issues in Lebanon

A variety of factors affect the water and marine life along the coastline of Lebanon. These factors include marine pollution, environmental impact of shipping, oil spills, noxious liquid substances spills, sewage spills, and the dumping of radioactive and medical waste. Despite being a hotspot for marine life within the Mediterranean, the Lebanese watershed and coastline is home to very high levels of pollution that threaten the human, animal, and plant life that rely upon it.

Oil spills

Jiyeh Power Station Bombing

Main article: Jiyeh Power Station oil spill

The Jiyeh power station oil spill is an environmental disaster that occurred July 13 - July 16 during the 2006 Lebanon war after Israeli raids on the Jiyeh thermal power plant in Beirut, Lebanon. The oil slick covered around 150km of the Lebanese coastline and released up 10,000 - 15,000 tons of crude oil into the sea. Parts of the oil sank to the seabed about 8m in depth, while the rest was transported toward Syria by the current. Especially affected by the oil spills were the peninsulas north of Jiyeh, ports and fishing harbors. The scale of the disaster is often compared to that of the Exxon Valdez spill and while Lebanese people suffered from this disaster, they did not receive any compensation, unlike the Deepwater Horizon 20,000,000,000 $ Trust.

Cleaning the oil spill proved to be very difficult for authorities in the critical early hours of the spill, mainly because of the ongoing conflict and the Israeli naval blockade, which lined the coast and continued firefights. Additionally, damaged roads prevented responders from going to the scene of the disaster, and the necessary funding for clean-up operations proved difficult to ensure. Despite the difficulties, efforts in the cleaning process were made by the civil society and non-governmental groups, since the Lebanese government was paralyzed and lacked capacity due to the war.

There were many longer lasting ecological effects to both marine life and humans due to the oil spill. Since there was a slow clean up response, the heavier crude oil to sank to the bottom, killing the marine life below that many on the coast rely on. Additionally, health experts have noted that the oil spills could cause health risks, such as cancer to people living in the area. Tourist beaches were also covered in oil slick for months after the spill.

Oil pollution from ships

See also: 2021 Mediterranean oil spill

According to an ITOPF study, 91% of the operational oil spills are small, resulting in less than 7 metric tons per spill. Lebanese public opinion and Lebanese authorities do not react to these minor spills occurring by the merchant ships calling the Lebanese ports. Being without inspection, and discharging close to the shore, oil Tankers are polluting the coast of Amsheet, Beirut, Jieh, Tripoli, Zahrani and Zouk. These pollutions have a direct effect on the marine life in these regions. Also, big cargo ships coming to Lebanon transport the equivalent oil volume of small tankers, and are polluting essentially from their machinery space. See Marpol Annex I.

Ballast water discharge

Ballast water is ocean water carried by large (cargo-) ships in order to increase the manoeuvrability and propulsion of ships, as well as to balance out potential redistributions or changes in weight, such as when cargo is loaded or unloaded, or as fuel is used over the course of the journey. Ballast water discharge typically contains a variety of biological materials, including plants, animals, viruses, and bacteria. These materials often include non-native, nuisance, exotic species that can cause extensive ecological and economic damage to aquatic ecosystems. Ballast water discharges are believed to be the leading source of invasive species in Lebanese marine waters, thus posing public health and environmental risks, as well as significant economic cost to industries such as commercial and recreational fisheries, agriculture, and tourism. Unlike developed countries, Lebanon does not have any regulations on the ballast water discharges. Ships calling Lebanese ports discharge stagnant ballast water (without being exchanged at sea), oily ballast water, graywater and bilge water without regulations or sanctions by the Lebanese authorities.

Sewage spills

Sewage management is a major issue within Lebanon. It is not uncommon for homes or buildings to dispose of their waste into natural water ways or man-made waste pools. In 2016 only 58.5% of buildings in Lebanon were connected to the sewer system. The other 41.5% of buildings used septic tanks, waste pools, or natural water sources (streams, rivers, lakes, etc.) to dispose of their sewage. This is a major issue within the country, as poor water quality has been linked to around 80% of all diseases. Additionally, it is not uncommon for sewage coming from buildings on the coast to flow directly into the Mediterranean without treatment, polluting marine life and beaches.

Another sewage issue is the sewage pollution of ships. Since many merchant navy vessels are not inspected, they do not respect the Marpol 73/78 annex IV which controls pollution of the sea by sewage from ships.

A study conducted on the major rivers in Lebanon in 2021 found fecal fecal coliform in 96% percent of the samples taken throughout the study. The results of this study highlighted the need for proper waste management and water treatment facilities in Lebanon.

Sea dumping

Further information: Marine debris

Sea dumping is a major contributor to the pollution of water in Lebanon. Sea dumping refers to the practice of disposing waste or debris into the ocean or along the coastline of a body of water. This practice has numerous negative effects on the health of the environment, marine life and humans in the area. Beirut, Lebanon and its suburbs produce around 3,000 tons of trash a day alone and despite being the capital of Lebanon, is often covered with trash. Another serious issue to the Lebanese marine environment is the dumping of rubbish from lorries as well as from ships. There have been a number of cases, particularly involving Sukleen, dumping its waste (including radioactive waste and hazardous medical waste) in the vicinity of the Karantina region. There are also many waste disposal locations on the Lebanese coast especially near Saida port, Bourj Hammoud, Normandie and Tripoli. In addition many cattle carriers dump their animal cadavers in the Lebanese territorial waters. See Marpol 73/78 annex V.

Land Reclamation

Along the coastline of Lebanon, there are large mounds of trash that extend hundreds of feet out in the Mediterranean sea. Along these mounds of trash, trucks are constantly dumping and layering on more waste. This process is called land reclamation and is the process of adding on to the pre-existing coastline.

Since 2015, Lebanon has been in a perpetual garbage crisis. The crisis began with the overflow of one of Lebanon’s main landfills, the Naameh landfill, and a lack of contingency plan by the government. This landfill was opened as an emergency solution in 1997, but has been the source of protest, due to the lack of attention and compensation for both the inhabitants of Naameh and the environment. The dumping and burning of trash in the streets became very common and ultimately led to protests in many cities throughout the country. Due to their lack of action, the government began the process of “land reclamation” and began disposing of waste on the coastlines and in the ocean in order to extend their coastline out to sea.

Noxious liquid substances spills

According to CNRS surveys, The Chekka sea area is polluted by Noxious chemical substances (Sulfuric acid, Phosphoric acid...). These Noxious liquid substances spills occur essentially during the Loading/discharging operations at the Sellaata chemical Terminal near Chekka. See Marpol 73/78 annex II.