Lebanon’s waste crisis worsens amid COVID-19 outbreak
A local NGO is taking care of medical waste produced by health institutions amid the coronavirus crisis in Lebanon, which is already grappling with an acute trash crisis.
BEIRUT — Almost five years have elapsed since the outbreak of the waste crisis that hit Lebanon in July 2015, when waste filled the streets following the closure of the Naameh landfill south of Beirut. This landfill was initially built as a temporary fix for waste collection, but it caused cancerous diseases to many of the region’s residents.
This prompted major demonstrations led by the Lebanese youth who launched a campaign dubbed “You Stink” to protest the political elite’s mismanagement and corruption in addressing the waste crisis, as garbage filled up the streets.
The waste crisis has now resurfaced with the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in Lebanon. Many Lebanese are wondering how the medical waste that can transmit the virus that causes COVID-19 is being collected from hospitals, not to mention the used gloves and masks that citizens throw away into the streets.
In this context, head of the Private Hospitals Syndicate in Lebanon Suleiman Haroun told Al-Monitor about the method used in hospitals to collect and throw out medical waste. He said, “There are many types of waste, including waste produced by the hospital kitchen where food is prepared for patients, in addition to waste resulting from cleaning hospital departments and clinics. This type of waste is similar to household waste. It is dumped in the bins allocated by the municipalities.”
