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Jbeil District to ban all use of plastic bags by the end of 2018

The municipality of Jbeil will ban all use of plastic bags by the start of 2019, officials confirmed.

In a memo issued by the municipality, the local government has urged all supermarkets and retail outlets to replace plastic bags with eco-friendly alternatives by the start of next year.

The municipality is attempting to cut down some of its waste, and is urging other cities and municipalities to follow suit.

In the published memo, Jbeil Mayor Wissam Zaarour is asking the owners of establishments to replace plastic bags with eco-friendly ones (Facebook/Municipality of Jbail-Byblos)
In the published memo, Jbeil Mayor Wissam Zaarour is asking the owners of establishments to replace plastic bags with eco-friendly ones (Facebook/Municipality of Jbail-Byblos)

Many Lebanese environmental groups praised the decision, including Greenpeace Mediterranean global campaign.

“The Jbeil municipality got it right,” Julien Jreissati, a Greenpeace campaigner, told The Daily Star. “Our path out of this garbage crisis starts by reducing the amount of waste we produce.”

RELATED: Wind Power industry in Lebanon industry attracts bids from 40+ companies

The memo’s release comes just two days after Starbucks announced it will stop using disposable plastic straws by 2020 in a effort to eliminate some of the 335 million tons of plastic waste produced globally every year.

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 News

LAU students make ‘Phoenician ship’ made of plastic bottles

Lebanese American University students sailed a ‘Phoenician ship’ from Byblos to the Beirut port — and it was all made out of plastic bottles, the National News Agency reported.

Students worked with the ‘Chreek’ environmental nonprofit to collect more than 50,000 plastic bottles to build the ship. More than 25,000 were used in its construction, officials said.

Jbeil Mayor Wissam Zaarour said the project worked in cooperation with the Byblos Municipality, and aims at drawing attention to the environmental damage caused by non-sorting of waste.

“(The ship) is an environmental symbol because the boat is made of 50,000 plastic bottles aimed at raising awareness about the dangers of this type of waste,” Zaarour told the National News Agency. “It’s also cultural symbolism by embodying the Phoenician vessels that were used for trade and export of Lebanese cedar wood through the Jbeil coast.”

According to the LAU organizers, 50,000 bottles represents 10 percent of daily usage of plastic bottles in Lebanon.

Photo released by NNA/Lebanese National News Agency
Photo released by NNA/Lebanese National News Agency

Students said the project also aims to show how plastic waste does not decompose in nature, while celebrating Phoenician history known for its manufacturing of ships.

A ceremony held in Byblos was attended by Lebanese Culture Minister Ghattas Khoury, Lebanese American University President Joseph Jabbra and the Chreek Association Head George Ghafari, among other government and university officials.

The attendees sent off the ship from the coast of Jbeil to the Beirut port.

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 Lifestyle

Austrian mountaineer climbs Baatara Gorge in Tannourine

Austrian climber David Lama chose Lebanon as the location for his latest adventure and fixed his sights on setting a route in the untouched Baatara Gorge.

It was a bold move for the 25-year-old climber and he successfully set the new route Avaatara, which is a 5.14d climb.

“If you get to travel roads that have already been discovered, you’re basically just following,” Lama said, citing the reason why he chose to visit Lebanon. “But if you go somewhere no one has ever been you’re basically in the lead and that’s something I really like.”

“Lebanon is definitely a special place, it’s somehow a little bit exotic, a place that you don’t actually plan to go to as a climber, as it’s not really on the climbing map, and that’s one factor that drove me to come here.”

David Lama climbs the first ascent of Avaatara (5.14d) in the Baatara Gorge near Tannourine, Lebanon on June 18th, 2015. (Corey Rich/Red Bull Content Pool)
David Lama climbs the first ascent of Avaatara (5.14d) in the Baatara Gorge near Tannourine, Lebanon on June 18th, 2015. (Corey Rich/Red Bull Content Pool)

The Baatara gorge sinkhole is a waterfall in Tannourine, Lebanon, which drops 255 metres into the Baatara Pothole, a cave of Jurassic limestone located on the Lebanon Mountain Trail.

Lama is the first person to ever scale the sinkhole.

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 News

Machnouk shares photography hobby on Facebook amid trash crisis

(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — Lebanon’s Environment Minister Mohamad Machnouk has been silent on his personal Facebook profile since August 12 after he faced backlash for sharing landscape photos amid the widely reported trash crisis.

Machnouk, 74, who previously worked in press and photography, formerly served in various media roles and as president of the Federation of Arab News Agencies.

But his favorite hobby isn’t making some people smile. Amid the widely reported trash crisis which has left Lebanon’s streets piling with uncollected garbage, Machnouk may have found peace in his own photos — but some Lebanese citizens haven’t.

“I think it should be better for you that you find solution for the waste crisis instead of putting these silly photos,” wrote one Facebook user.

“(sic) Do u think you’ll be able to take such nice pics in the near future with all the dirt piling up in so many outdoor areas of our beautiful country?” wrote another.

Machnouk, who actively used Facebook for photo-sharing, deleted his most recent post and has remained silent since.

Protesters are calling for his resignation for his failure to solve the trash crisis, which has been going on for more than a month.

But on Saturday, Machnouk reiterated that he would not resign during the country’s “critical stage.”

“There is joint responsibility,” he said in comments to An-Nahar newspaper. “The resignation of the Cabinet is out of the question for all political powers because it means a leap into a vacuum and chaos.”

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 News

Iran offers donation to build dams in Lebanon

(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — Iran announced plans to offer a donation on Sunday to help Lebanon better manage its water resources by building dams in the country.

Lebanese Environmental Minister Mohammad Machnouk met with Iran’s Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian in Tehran, where they announced that Iran was prepared to offer donations to the Lebanese government for dam construction.

“We held serious talks on dam construction in Lebanon and Iran’s experiences and capabilities in the field of dam construction were explained,” Chitchian said. “Iran is ready to provide the friendly country of Lebanon with all its technical capacities and facilities.”

In 2012, Iran offered Lebanon a $40 million cash donation to support the Balaa dam in Batroun, which came under fire by several Lebanese political leaders.

MP Boutrous Harb said the Iranian donation to Batroun was a political gain for Iran and its allies in the region.

Chitchian confirmed on Sunday, however, that Tehran did not end up funding the Balaa dam, which is currently under construction.

Machnouk, who was visiting Iran for an environmental conference, said the meeting also discussed water pollution, drought, and other water-related problems in Lebanon.

Iran currently has dam construction projects in Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and in neighboring Azerbaijan and Armenia, according to the Iranian state-run news agency. Sources say Iran has also begun to develop dams in Nicaragua and Ecuador.

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