Garbage piles up in Akkar

BEIRUT — Garbage piles are growing by the sides of several public roads, river banks, waterway canals and at the entrances of towns and villages in Akkar, North Lebanon, L’Orient Today’s correspondent in the North reported on Friday, citing municipal financial problems as the cause.

Many residents in Akkar have not been able to pay their municipal taxes due to the economic crisis, making it difficult for local authorities to finance garbage collection operations, while state authorities have also not paid the municipalities some of the funds due, according to our correspondent.

In December, garbage piled up in the streets of Saida, South Lebanon, after the company responsible for garbage collection in the area halted work due to a lack of funds to fuel vehicles and a lack of dues payment by the government, to a senior employee at the company said.

Garbage pileups have been a recurring issue in Lebanon since even before the onset of the current economic crisis. The recurring problem has been widely linked to the absence of a sustainable solid waste management plan. Authorities have resorted to filling and then expanding garbage dumps beyond capacity. The waste management crisis has only been exacerbated by the country's economic collapse as the government struggles to pay for basic services such as garbage collection.

Additional reporting by Michel Hallak