Farmland in Akkar (North Lebanon) infested by an oil leak. (Credit: Michel Hallak/L'Orient-Le Jour)
An oil leak on the Lebanese bank of the al-Kabir river in Akkar (North Lebanon), following flooding, damaged farmland in several villages in the region on Saturday, reported our correspondent.
Farmers in Massoudiyeh, Summaqieh and Arida, who lamented the damage caused by the leak, were unable to determine whether it came from the Iraqi pipeline that crosses Syria and Akkar in Lebanon. Built almost 90 years ago to transport oil from Iraq through Syria to the city of Tripoli, the pipeline was shut down at the start of the civil war in 1975.
According to our correspondent, outgoing Minister of the Environment Nasser Yassine stated that teams from the ministry are monitoring the incident and will draw up a detailed report on the origin of the leak.
Oil leaks have occurred repeatedly in recent years in Akkar, and several appeals have been made to resolve the problem.
This article was originally published in L'Orient-Le Jour.