Shehayyeb: Negotiations to Export Waste to Kick Off with European Firms – – Naharnet
Agriculture Minister Akram Shehayyeb revealed that negotiations with European companies to export Lebanon’s garbage will kick off on Thursday, reported As Safir newspaper.
He told the daily: “The negotiations rely on very critical calculations and technical details.”
The negotiations will be carried out with four firms.
“We are seeking to obtain the cheapest price with the best conditions,” he added without disclosing the names of the companies.
“Exporting the waste should adhere to international laws that Lebanon is committed to,” continued the minister.
“There are several technicalities that need to be agreed upon before taking the final decision to export the trash,” he explained, such as the weight and nature of the waste.
The waste being addressed are those of Beirut and the Mount Lebanon region that are under the jurisdiction of the Sukleen garbage collection company, said Shehayyeb.
The export will take place over an 18-month period, which should be followed with the implementation of the waste disposal plan that he had devised.
A meeting was held on Wednesday between Prime Minister Tammam Salam, Shehayyeb, and the concerned technical committee to address the latest progress made in resolving the waste management crisis that erupted in July with the closure of the Naameh landfill.
The landfill was shut with officials failing to find an alternative to it resulting in the pile up of garbage on the streets of the country and the emergence of arbitrary landfills that pose health and environmental hazards.
M.T.
D.A.
http://www.naharnet.com/stories/en/194805-shehayyeb-negotiations-to-export-waste-to-kick-off-with-european-firms
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Shehayyeb: My Trash Disposal Plan was Obstructed for Political Reasons – Naharnet
Agriculture Minister Akram Shehayyeb criticized how his plan to end the country’s garbage disposal crisis was managed, reported the daily An Nahar on Wednesday.
He told the daily: “My proposal was obstructed for political reasons, as well as reasons linked to various areas in the country.”
“There are other causes that I will not divulge,” he added.
Various municipalities had rejected the establishment of landfills in their areas as proposed by the minister’s plan.
The country was plunged in a waste disposal crisis following the closure of the Naameh landfill without finding an alternative for it.
Progress had been made in setting up a landfill in the North and another in the South, but obstacles have hindered this plan.
Commenting on the possibility of exporting the waste, Shehayyeb replied: “We have not taken a decision on the matter.”
“We are studying the health, legal, and environmental aspects of the proposals,” he explained.
Media reports had spoken of the possibility of sending the trash to Syria or the Turkish part of Cyprus.
Exporting the waste to Europe is not possible because Lebanon does not have the means needed to turn the garbage into the standards demanded by these countries.
Shehayyeb and the concerned committee tackling the garbage crisis are expected to meet with Prime Minister Tammam Salam at the Serail later on Wednesday to discuss proposals to resolve the issue, revealed al-Joumhouria newspaper.
Media reports on Tuesday said that the national dialogue conferees had agreed to “export the waste” and the need to “schedule a cabinet session” to approve this step upon the completion of the preparations.
M.T.
D.A.
http://www.naharnet.com/stories/en/194703-shehayyeb-my-trash-disposal-plan-was-obstructed-for-political-reasons
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Dialogue Parties Agree to ‘Activate Cabinet, Export Garbage’ – Naharnet
Dialogue Parties Agree to ‘Activate Cabinet, Export Garbage’
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
by Naharnet Newsdesk 2 days ago
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The country’s political parties agreed during a national dialogue session on Tuesday to “activate the work of state institutions, especially the cabinet,” as reports said that they also decided to export the accumulating garbage as a solution to the waste disposal crisis.
“The conferees stressed the need to activate the work of state institutions, especially the cabinet, in order to address the pressing issues,” said an official statement issued after the talks in Ain al-Tineh.
Condemning the deadly suicide bombings that hit Bourj al-Barajneh, the parties lauded “the sweeping national consensus on deploring it and the solidarity that was expressed by all political parties in the face of terrorism.”
They also praised the efforts of security agencies, “which managed to unveil all the details of this crime and arrest the culprits in record time,” underlining the importance of “maintaining coordination among them (security agencies) to preserve stability and foil any terrorist plots.”
The next session will be held on November 25.
Tuesday’s session was attended by Change and Reform bloc leader MP Michel Aoun, who had sent a representative to many previous meetings, amid the absence of the Lebanese Forces and the Kataeb Party.
According to information obtained by LBCI television, the conferees “discussed the issue of exporting garbage” and the need to “schedule a cabinet session” to approve this step upon the completion of the preparations.
“The session was very beneficial but things need patience,” Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat told reporters after the dialogue session.
During the meeting, Aoun said that the new electoral law must ensure “fairness and proper representation” and must “rectify the flaws without any ambiguity.”
“The war of terrorism has become global,” he added, noting that “it must be confronted through a comprehensive plan, not partial solutions.”
Y.R.
http://www.naharnet.com/stories/en/194669-dialogue-parties-agree-to-activate-cabinet-export-garbage
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Report: Cabinet Unlikely to Convene until Breakthrough Made in Trash File – Naharnet
Prime Minister Tammam Salam is unlikely to call cabinet to session any time soon due to his fear of its failure given the lack of progress made in resolving the garbage disposal crisis, reported al-Joumhouria newspaper Monday.
Sources from the premier told the daily: “Any cabinet session hinges on progress in the trash crisis.”
They stressed that Agriculture Minister Akram Shehayyeb is continuing his efforts to resolve the issue and he and a technical team are studying various proposal on exporting the waste.
They have so far reached the legal, financial, and technical aspects of the proposals, they revealed.
Once they complete their study, Salam will call cabinet to session, said the sources.
Lebanon was plunged in a garbage disposal crisis in July with the closure of the Naameh landfill and the failure to find an alternative for it.
http://www.naharnet.com/stories/en/194525-report-cabinet-unlikely-to-convene-until-breakthrough-made-in-trash-file
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