The long and dramatic story of the Naameh landfill has come to an end, officials announced Wednesday. However, the trash crisis continues, as the two landfills being counted on to replace the dump south of Beirut are not yet operational. A Cabinet decree was issued in March to resolve Lebanon’s trash crisis, but did not specify what would happen to the garbage produced in the Aley and Chouf districts.

 

Nevertheless, after years of repulsive odors and hazardous air, residents of Naameh can breathe a sigh of relief at the news that the notorious landfill was due to shut down at midnight Wednesday.

 

The Naameh landfill was shut on July 17, 2015, after operating for 17 years. Opened in 1998, the landfill was intended to be a temporary repository for waste, but successive governments kept postponing its closure. Sukleen, the waste contractor for Greater Beirut and Mount Lebanon, oversaw the process of garbage collection and treatment.

 

Media showed trucks in the area Wednesday night and reported that there was still activity at the dump.

 

The closure of the Naameh landfill last summer sparked the worst trash crisis in Lebanese history, as garbage piled up in the streets of the capital and Mount Lebanon for eight months. The government’s failure to reach a solution prompted civil society groups to hold protests, which at times took a violent turn.

 

In March, the government reached a solution that called for the reopening of the Naameh landfill for two months to take in the decomposing waste that had piled up since its closure.

 

Newly produced trash was taken to parking lots in Costa Brava and Burj Hammoud, where the new landfills are to be located.

 

The parking lots will continue to accept bailed trash until the landfills in Costa Brava and Burj Hammoud are ready.

 

The decision to award the contract for the Costa Brava site has yet to be officially announced, although the company to construct it has reportedly been chosen.

 

Media reported Wednesday that the Council for Development and Reconstruction had awarded the contract to Jihad al-Arab’s AlJihad Group for Commerce and Contracting.

 

The CDR, the government body that supervises the awarding of contracts, could not be reached by The Daily Star for confirmation.

 

Sukleen and its sister company Sukomi released a statement confirming that they had completed their duties. Their work at the Naameh landfill will be limited following its closure. (The Daily Star)

 

 

PHOTO: Excavators operate as trucks unload garbage in the Naameh landfill, south of Beirut, Lebanon May 18, 2016.

CREDIT: REUTERS/Aziz Taher.