Editing Lebanon (section)

== Geography ==
{{Main|Geography of Lebanon}}
[[File:Qadisha_Valley,_Aerial_View_From_Qannoubine_Monastery.jpg|thumb|left|[[Kadisha Valley]], a view from [[Qannoubine]] Monastery]]

Lebanon is located in West Asia between latitudes [[33rd parallel north|33°]] and [[35th parallel north|35° N]] and longitudes [[35th meridian east|35°]] and [[37th meridian east|37° E]]. Its land straddles the "northwest of the [[Arabian Plate]]".<ref>Egyptian Journal of Geology – Volume 42, Issue 1 – Page 263, 1998</ref> The country's surface area is {{convert|10452|sqkm}} of which {{convert|10230|sqkm}} is [[land area|land]]. Lebanon has a coastline and border of {{convert|225|km}} on the [[Mediterranean Sea]] to the west, a {{convert|375|km}} border shared with [[Syria]] to the north and east and a {{convert|79|km}} long border with Israel to the south.<ref name="enbr">{{cite book | title=Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan – Middle East: region in transition | publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group | author=Etheredge, Laura S | year=2011| pages=85–159| isbn=978-1-61530-414-1}}</ref> The [[Blue Line (Lebanon)|border]] with the Israeli-occupied [[Golan Heights]] is disputed by Lebanon in a small area called [[Shebaa Farms]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Philps |first=Alan |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/lebanon/1343868/Israel%27s-withdrawal-from-Lebanon-given-UN%27s-endorsement.html |title=Israel's Withdrawal from Lebanon Given UN's Endorsement |work=The Daily Telegraph |date=19 June 2000 |access-date=17 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090222035407/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/lebanon/1343868/Israel%27s-withdrawal-from-Lebanon-given-UN%27s-endorsement.html |archive-date=22 February 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[File:Satellite image of Lebanon in March 2002.jpg|thumb|upright|Lebanon from space. Snow cover can be seen on the western [[Lebanon Mountains|Mount Lebanon]] and eastern [[Anti-Lebanon Mountains|Anti-Lebanon]] mountain ranges.]]
Lebanon is divided into four distinct [[Physical geography|physiographic]] regions: the coastal plain, the [[Lebanon Mountains|Lebanon mountain]] range, the [[Beqaa Valley]] and the [[Anti-Lebanon Mountains]]. The narrow and discontinuous [[coastal plain]] stretches from the Syrian border in the north where it widens to form the [[Akkar]] plain to [[Naqoura|Ras al-Naqoura]] at the border with Israel in the south. The fertile coastal plain is formed of marine sediments and river deposited [[alluvium]] alternating with sandy bays and rocky beaches. Lebanon's mountains rise steeply parallel to the Mediterranean coast and form a ridge of [[limestone]] and [[sandstone]] that runs for most of the country's length.

The mountain range varies in width between {{convert|10|km|0|abbr=on}} and {{convert|56|km|0|abbr=on}}; it is carved by narrow and deep gorges. The Lebanon mountains peak at {{convert|3088|m}} [[Above mean sea level|above sea level]] in [[Qurnat as Sawda']] in [[North Governorate|North Lebanon]] and gradually slope to the south before rising again to a height of {{convert|2695|m}} in [[Mount Sannine]]. The Beqaa valley sits between the Lebanon mountains in the west and the Anti-Lebanon range in the east; it is a part of the [[Great Rift Valley]] system. The valley is {{convert|180|km|0|abbr=on}} long and {{convert|10|to|26|km|0|abbr=on}} wide, its fertile soil is formed by alluvial deposits. The Anti-Lebanon range runs parallel to the Lebanon mountains, its highest peak is in [[Mount Hermon]] at {{convert|2814|m}}.<ref name="enbr" />

The mountains of Lebanon are drained by [[Intermittent stream|seasonal torrents]] and [[perennial stream|rivers]] foremost of which is the {{convert|145|km}} long [[Litani river|Leontes]] that rises in the Beqaa Valley to the west of [[Baalbek]] and empties into the Mediterranean Sea north of Tyre.<ref name="enbr" /> Lebanon has [[List of rivers of Lebanon|16 rivers]] all of which are [[navigability|non-navigable]]; 13 rivers originate from [[Mount Lebanon]] and run through the steep gorges and into the [[Mediterranean Sea]], the other three arise in the [[Beqaa Valley]].<ref name=MOTE>{{cite web|last=ECODIT|title=National action plan for the reduction of pollution into the mediterranean sea from land based sources|url=http://smap.ew.eea.europa.eu/media_server/files/C/f/NAP_Med.pdf|publisher=Lebanese ministry of the environment|access-date=31 January 2012|date=October 2005}}{{dead link|date=July 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}</ref>

=== Climate ===
{{Main|Climate of Lebanon}}

Lebanon has a moderate [[Mediterranean climate]]. In coastal areas, winters are generally cool and rainy whilst summers are hot and humid. In more elevated areas, temperatures usually drop below freezing during the winter with heavy snow cover that remains until early summer on the higher mountaintops.<ref name="enbr" /><ref>(Bonechi et al.) (2004) ''Golden Book Lebanon'', p. 3, Florence, Italy: Casa Editrice Bonechi. {{ISBN|88-476-1489-9}}</ref> Although most of Lebanon receives a relatively large amount of rainfall, when measured annually in comparison to its arid surroundings, certain areas in north-eastern Lebanon receives only little because of the [[rain shadow]] created by the high peaks of the western mountain range.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://countrystudies.us/lebanon/31.htm |title=Lebanon – Climate |publisher=Country Studies US |access-date=17 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116234930/http://countrystudies.us/lebanon/31.htm |archive-date=16 January 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Storm Adam]] 2025 saw severe polar weather system affecting Lebanon with low tempertures and snow expected to fall at elevations as low as 300 meters above sea level.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-02-19 |title=With Storm Adam, snow up to 300 meters above sea level |url=https://today.lorientlejour.com/article/1448505/with-storm-adam-snow-up-to-300-meters-above-sea-level.html |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=L'Orient Today |language=en}}</ref>

=== Environment{{anchor|Environmental issues}} ===
{{Main|Wildlife of Lebanon|Marine environmental issues in Lebanon}}
[[File:Cedar of Lebanon (Cedar of God), Lebanon.jpg|thumb|The [[Cedrus libani|Lebanon cedar]] is the national emblem of Lebanon.]]
[[File:Pilgrimage_to_the_Cedars_of_Libanon.jpg|thumb|'Pilgrimage to the Cedars of Libanon' – painting by a Hungarian painter, [[Tivadar Csontváry Kosztka|Csontváry Kosztka Tivadar]]]]
In ancient times, Lebanon was covered by large forests of [[Cedrus libani|cedar trees]], the national emblem of the country.<ref name="cedar">{{cite web |url=http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/lebanon_cedar.htm |title=Lebanon Cedar – Cedrus libani |publisher=Blue Planet Biomes |access-date=17 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130117000050/http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/lebanon_cedar.htm |archive-date=17 January 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Millennia of deforestation have altered the hydrology in Mount Lebanon and changed the regional climate adversely.<ref>Greipsson, Sigurdur Ph.D. Restoration Ecology, Jones & Bartlett Learning, Kennesaw State University, 2011, page 279</ref> As of 2012, forests covered 13.4% of the Lebanese land area;<ref name="WB">{{cite web | url=http://data.worldbank.org/country/lebanon | title=Lebanon  | work=Data indicators by country | publisher=The World Bank | year=2012 | access-date=13 January 2012 | author=((The World Bank)) | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120113155307/http://data.worldbank.org/country/lebanon | archive-date=13 January 2012 | url-status=live | df=dmy-all}}</ref> they are under constant threat from [[wildfire]]s caused by the long dry summer season.<ref name="IPSs">{{cite web|url=http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=47890 |title=Global Warming Makes Mischief Worse |publisher=Inter Press Service |date=30 July 2009 |access-date=13 January 2012 |author=Alami, Mona |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100612095548/http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=47890 |archive-date=12 June 2010}}</ref>

As a result of longstanding exploitation, few old cedar trees remain in pockets of forests in Lebanon, but there is an active program to conserve and regenerate the forests. The Lebanese approach has emphasized natural regeneration over planting by creating the right conditions for [[germination]] and growth. The Lebanese state has created several nature reserves that contain cedars, including the [[Al Shouf Cedar Nature Reserve|Shouf Biosphere Reserve]], the Jaj Cedar Reserve, the [[Tannourine]] Reserve, the Ammouaa and Karm Shbat Reserves in the Akkar district, and the Forest of the [[Cedars of God]] near [[Bsharri]].<ref>Talhouk, S. N. & Zurayk, S. 2003. Conifer conservation in Lebanon. ''Acta Hort''. 615: 411–414.</ref><ref>Semaan, M. & Haber, R. 2003. In situ conservation on ''Cedrus libani'' in Lebanon. ''Acta Hort''. 615: 415–417.</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=Khaldoun Baz |url=http://www.shoufcedar.org/ |title=Cedars of Lebanon Nature Reserve |publisher=Shoufcedar.org |date=10 August 2011 |access-date=5 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120519235704/http://www.shoufcedar.org/ |archive-date=19 May 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Lebanon had a 2019 [[Forest Landscape Integrity Index]] mean score of 3.76/10, ranking it 141st globally out of 172 countries.<ref name="FLII-Supplementary">{{cite journal|last1=Grantham|first1=H. S.|last2=Duncan|first2=A.|last3=Evans|first3=T. D.|last4=Jones|first4=K. R.|last5=Beyer|first5=H. L.|last6=Schuster|first6=R.|last7=Walston|first7=J.|last8=Ray|first8=J. C.|last9=Robinson|first9=J. G.|last10=Callow|first10=M.|last11=Clements|first11=T.|last12=Costa|first12=H. M.|last13=DeGemmis|first13=A.|last14=Elsen|first14=P. R.|last15=Ervin|first15=J.|last16=Franco|first16=P.|last17=Goldman|first17=E.|last18=Goetz|first18=S.|last19=Hansen|first19=A.|last20=Hofsvang|first20=E.|last21=Jantz|first21=P.|last22=Jupiter|first22=S.|last23=Kang|first23=A.|last24=Langhammer|first24=P.|last25=Laurance|first25=W. F.|last26=Lieberman|first26=S.|last27=Linkie|first27=M.|last28=Malhi|first28=Y.|last29=Maxwell|first29=S.|last30=Mendez|first30=M.|last31=Mittermeier|first31=R.|last32=Murray|first32=N. J.|last33=Possingham|first33=H.|last34=Radachowsky|first34=J.|last35=Saatchi|first35=S.|last36=Samper|first36=C.|last37=Silverman|first37=J.|last38=Shapiro|first38=A.|last39=Strassburg|first39=B.|last40=Stevens|first40=T.|last41=Stokes|first41=E.|last42=Taylor|first42=R.|last43=Tear|first43=T.|last44=Tizard|first44=R.|last45=Venter|first45=O.|last46=Visconti|first46=P.|last47=Wang|first47=S.|last48=Watson|first48=J. E. M.|display-authors=1|title=Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity – Supplementary Material|journal=Nature Communications|volume=11|issue=1|year=2020|page=5978|issn=2041-1723|doi=10.1038/s41467-020-19493-3|pmid=33293507|pmc=7723057|bibcode=2020NatCo..11.5978G }}</ref>

In 2010, the Environment Ministry set a 10-year plan to increase the national forest coverage by 20%, which is equivalent to the planting of two million new trees each year.<ref name="dailystar1">{{cite journal |url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Article.aspx?id=155258 |title=Lebanon begins landmark reforestation campaign |journal=The Daily Star |date=26 November 2011 |access-date=17 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116232322/http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Article.aspx?id=155258 |archive-date=16 January 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref> The plan, which was funded by the United States Agency for International Development ([[United States Agency for International Development|USAID]]), and implemented by the [[United States Forest Service|U.S. Forest Service]] (USFS), through the Lebanon Reforestation Initiative (LRI), was inaugurated in 2011 by planting cedar, pine, wild almond, juniper, fir, oak and other seedlings, in ten regions around Lebanon.<ref name="dailystar1" /> As of 2016, forests covered 13.6% of Lebanon, and other wooded lands represented a further 11%.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fao.org/in-action/forest-landscape-restoration-mechanism/resources/detail/en/c/412643/ |title=Forest and landscape restoration in Lebanon |publisher=Sundance Institute |date=29 April 2016 |access-date=24 May 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180525133311/http://www.fao.org/in-action/forest-landscape-restoration-mechanism/resources/detail/en/c/412643/ |archive-date=25 May 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> Since 2011, over 600,000 trees, including cedars and other native species, have been planted throughout the country as part of the Lebanon Reforestation Initiative (LRI).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://share.america.gov/restoring-lebanons-cedar-forests/ |title=Restoring Lebanon's cedar forests |newspaper=Shareamerica |publisher=Share America |date=10 January 2017 |access-date=24 May 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180525132714/https://share.america.gov/restoring-lebanons-cedar-forests/ |archive-date=25 May 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Lebanon contains two terrestrial ecoregions: [[Eastern Mediterranean conifer–sclerophyllous–broadleaf forests]] and [[Southern Anatolian montane conifer and deciduous forests]].<ref name="DinersteinOlson2017">{{cite journal|last1=Dinerstein|first1=Eric|last2=Olson|first2=David|last3=Joshi|first3=Anup|last4=Vynne|first4=Carly|last5=Burgess|first5=Neil D.|last6=Wikramanayake|first6=Eric|last7=Hahn|first7=Nathan|last8=Palminteri|first8=Suzanne|last9=Hedao|first9=Prashant|last10=Noss|first10=Reed|last11=Hansen|first11=Matt|last12=Locke|first12=Harvey|last13=Ellis|first13=Erle C|last14=Jones|first14=Benjamin|last15=Barber|first15=Charles Victor|last16=Hayes|first16=Randy|last17=Kormos|first17=Cyril|last18=Martin|first18=Vance|last19=Crist|first19=Eileen|last20=Sechrest|first20=Wes|last21=Price|first21=Lori|last22=Baillie|first22=Jonathan E. M.|last23=Weeden|first23=Don|last24=Suckling|first24=Kierán|last25=Davis|first25=Crystal|last26=Sizer|first26=Nigel|last27=Moore|first27=Rebecca|last28=Thau|first28=David|last29=Birch|first29=Tanya|last30=Potapov|first30=Peter|last31=Turubanova|first31=Svetlana|last32=Tyukavina|first32=Alexandra|last33=de Souza|first33=Nadia|last34=Pintea|first34=Lilian|last35=Brito|first35=José C.|last36=Llewellyn|first36=Othman A.|last37=Miller|first37=Anthony G.|last38=Patzelt|first38=Annette|last39=Ghazanfar|first39=Shahina A.|last40=Timberlake|first40=Jonathan|last41=Klöser|first41=Heinz|last42=Shennan-Farpón|first42=Yara|last43=Kindt|first43=Roeland|last44=Lillesø|first44=Jens-Peter Barnekow|last45=van Breugel|first45=Paulo|last46=Graudal|first46=Lars|last47=Voge|first47=Maianna|last48=Al-Shammari|first48=Khalaf F.|last49=Saleem|first49=Muhammad|display-authors=1|title=An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm|journal=BioScience|volume=67|issue=6|year=2017|pages=534–545|issn=0006-3568|doi=10.1093/biosci/bix014|pmid=28608869|pmc=5451287}}</ref>

Beirut and Mount Lebanon have been facing a severe garbage crisis. After the closure of the Bourj Hammoud dump in 1997, the al-Naameh dumpsite was opened by the government in 1998. The al-Naameh dumpsite was planned to contain 2 million tons of waste for a limited period of six years at the most. It was designed to be a temporary solution, while the government would have devised a long-term plan. Sixteen years later al-Naameh was still open and exceeded its capacity by 13 million tons. In July 2015 the residents of the area, already protesting in the recent years, forced the closure of the dumpsite. The inefficiency of the government, as well as the corruption inside of the waste management company Sukleen in charge of managing the garbage in Lebanon, have resulted in piles of garbage blocking streets in Mount Lebanon and Beirut.<ref>{{cite web|last1=chronicle.fanack.com|title=Republic of Rubbish|url=https://chronicle.fanack.com/lebanon/history-past-to-present/republic-of-rubbish/|website=fanack.com|date=11 August 2015|access-date=12 August 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150903235706/https://chronicle.fanack.com/lebanon/history-past-to-present/republic-of-rubbish/|archive-date=3 September 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>[[File:Bsharridistrictmountains.jpg|thumb|left|[[Mount Lebanon]] is a mountain range in Lebanon. It averages above 2,500 m (8,200 ft) in elevation.]]

In December 2015, the Lebanese government signed an agreement with Chinook Industrial Mining, part owned by [[Chinook Sciences]], to export over 100,000 tons of untreated waste from [[Beirut]] and the surrounding area. The waste had accumulated in temporary locations following the government closure of the county's largest land fill site five months earlier. The contract was jointly signed with Howa International which has offices in the Netherlands and Germany. The contract is reported to cost $212 per ton. The waste, which is compacted and infectious, would have to be sorted and was estimated to be enough to fill 2,000 containers.<ref>Exportation plan was Lebanon's only option: Environment Minister. {{Cite web |url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb//News/Lebanon-News/2015/Dec-28/329219-exportation-plan-was-lebanons-only-option-environment-minister.ashx |title=Archived copy |access-date=14 April 2019 |archive-date=8 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160108030730/http://www.dailystar.com.lb//News/Lebanon-News/2015/Dec-28/329219-exportation-plan-was-lebanons-only-option-environment-minister.ashx |url-status=bot: unknown }} from [http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Lebanon-News/2015/Dec-28/329219-exportation-plan-was-lebanons-only-option-environment-minister.ashx the original].{{pb}}Sukleen defends itself against corruption allegations. {{Cite web |url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb//News/Lebanon-News/2015/Dec-28/329208-sukleen-defends-itself-against-corruption-allegations.ashx |title=Archived copy |access-date=14 April 2019 |archive-date=8 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160108030748/http://www.dailystar.com.lb//News/Lebanon-News/2015/Dec-28/329208-sukleen-defends-itself-against-corruption-allegations.ashx |url-status=bot: unknown }} from [http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Lebanon-News/2015/Dec-28/329208-sukleen-defends-itself-against-corruption-allegations.ashx the original].{{pb}}Lebanon trash not fit to produce fuel: Export firm. {{Cite web |url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb//News/Lebanon-News/2016/Jan-05/330225-lebanon-trash-not-fit-to-produce-fuel-export-firm.ashx |title=Archived copy |access-date=14 April 2019 |archive-date=10 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160110135228/http://www.dailystar.com.lb//News/Lebanon-News/2016/Jan-05/330225-lebanon-trash-not-fit-to-produce-fuel-export-firm.ashx |url-status=bot: unknown }} from [http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Lebanon-News/2016/Jan-05/330225-lebanon-trash-not-fit-to-produce-fuel-export-firm.ashx the original].{{pb}}Environmentalists: Keep trash here. {{Cite web |url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb//News/Lebanon-News/2015/Dec-28/329143-environmentalists-keep-trash-here.ashx |title=Archived copy |access-date=14 April 2019 |archive-date=9 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160109120705/http://www.dailystar.com.lb//News/Lebanon-News/2015/Dec-28/329143-environmentalists-keep-trash-here.ashx |url-status=bot: unknown }} from [http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Lebanon-News/2015/Dec-28/329143-environmentalists-keep-trash-here.ashx the original].</ref> Initial reports that the waste was to be exported to [[Sierra Leone]] have been denied by diplomats.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Sierra Leone denies agreement to accept Lebanon waste |url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Lebanon-News/2016/Jan-10/331125-sierra-leone-denies-agreement-to-accept-lebanon-waste.ashx |journal=The Daily Star |date=10 January 2016 |access-date=10 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160111072951/http://dailystar.com.lb/News/Lebanon-News/2016/Jan-10/331125-sierra-leone-denies-agreement-to-accept-lebanon-waste.ashx |archive-date=11 January 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In February 2016, the government withdrew from negotiations after it was revealed that documents relating to the export of the trash to Russia were forgeries.<ref>The Daily Star (Lebanon) 16 February 2016.</ref> On 19 March 2016, the Cabinet reopened the Naameh landfill for 60 days in line with a plan it passed a few days earlier to end the trash crisis. The plan also stipulates the establishment of landfills in [[Bourj Hammoud]] and Costa Brava, east and south of Beirut respectively. Sukleen trucks began removing piled garbage from Karantina and heading to Naameh. Environment Minister Mohammad Machnouk announced during a chat with activists that over 8,000 tons of garbage had been collected up to that point in only 24 hours as part of the government's trash plan. The plan's execution was ongoing at last report.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Lebanon-News/2016/Mar-21/343245-trash-arrives-at-naameh-under-army-escort.ashx |title=Trash arrives at Naameh under Army escort |work=The Daily Star |access-date=8 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181125115608/http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Lebanon-News/2016/Mar-21/343245-trash-arrives-at-naameh-under-army-escort.ashx |archive-date=25 November 2018 |url-status=live}}{{pb}}{{cite web|author=Esperance Ghanem |url=http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/03/lebanon-trash-crisis-government-plan-landfills.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160411122651/http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/03/lebanon-trash-crisis-government-plan-landfills.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=11 April 2016 |title=Will short-term solution help Lebanon solve trash crisis? |date=21 March 2016 |access-date=8 December 2018}}</ref> In 2017, Human Rights Watch found that Lebanon's garbage crisis, and [[open burning of waste]] in particular, was posing a health risk to residents and violating the state's obligations under international law.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/12/01/lebanon-waste-crisis-posing-health-risks |title=Human Rights Watch |work=Hrw.org |date=December 2017 |access-date=8 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002042942/https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/12/01/lebanon-waste-crisis-posing-health-risks |archive-date=2 October 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In September 2018, Lebanon's parliament passed a law that banned open dumping and burning of waste. Despite penalties set in case of violations, Lebanese municipalities have been openly burning the waste, putting the lives of people in danger. In October 2018, [[Human Rights Watch]] researchers witnessed the open burning of dumps in al-Qantara and [[Qabrikha]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/10/18/lebanon-no-action-enforce-new-waste-law|title=Lebanon: No Action to Enforce New Waste Law|date=18 October 2018|access-date=18 October 2018|publisher=Human Rights Watch|archive-date=24 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224075741/https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/10/18/lebanon-no-action-enforce-new-waste-law|url-status=live}}</ref> On Sunday 13 October 2019 at night, a series of about 100 [[Lebanon forest fire 2019|forest fires]] according to [[Civil Defense|Lebanese Civil Defense]], broke out and spread over large areas of Lebanon's forests. Lebanese Prime Minister [[Saad Hariri|Saad Al-Hariri]] confirmed his contact with a number of countries to send assistance via helicopters and firefighting planes,<ref>{{Cite web|date=15 October 2019|title=الحريري يستغيث بأوروبا.. حرائق مهولة تلتهم أحراج لبنان|url=https://www.aljazeera.net/news/politics/2019/10/15/%D8%AD%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%82-%D8%BA%D9%8A%D8%B1-%D9%85%D8%B3%D8%A8%D9%88%D9%82%D8%A9-%D9%84%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%83%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%AB%D8%A9-%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%A6%D8%A9|trans-title=Massive fires devour the forest of Lebanon|access-date=14 March 2023|website=Al Jazeera|language=ar|archive-date=14 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200414165455/https://www.aljazeera.net/news/politics/2019/10/15/%D8%AD%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%82-%D8%BA%D9%8A%D8%B1-%D9%85%D8%B3%D8%A8%D9%88%D9%82%D8%A9-%D9%84%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%83%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%AB%D8%A9-%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%A6%D8%A9|url-status=live}}</ref> Cyprus, Jordan, Turkey and Greece participated in firefighting. According to press reports on Tuesday (15 October), fire has decreased in different places due to the rains.<ref>{{Cite web|last=بيروت|first=واس-|date=15 October 2019|title=الأمطار تشارك في إطفاء حرائق لبنان|url=https://www.alyaum.com/articles/6216373/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B3%D8%A8%D8%B9/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D9%85%D8%B7%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D8%AA%D8%B4%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%83-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%A5%D8%B7%D9%81%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D8%AD%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%82-%D9%84%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%86|language=ar|trans-title=Rain participates in extinguishing the fires of Lebanon|access-date=14 March 2023|website=Al Yaum|archive-date=22 October 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191022080843/https://www.alyaum.com/articles/6216373/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B3%D8%A8%D8%B9/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D9%85%D8%B7%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D8%AA%D8%B4%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%83-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%A5%D8%B7%D9%81%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D8%AD%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%82-%D9%84%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%86|url-status=live}}</ref> Lebanon's ongoing economic crisis has precipitated electricity shortages, prompting an increased reliance on diesel generators and subsequently contributing to environmental deterioration and health hazards. The scarcity of power has led to a heightened contamination of water sources. The compromised infrastructure, marked by sewage infiltrating drinking water, has given rise to significant health concerns, including an increase in cases of [[Hepatitis A]]. The health service, grappling with workforce shortages due to emigration, struggles amid a growing public health crisis.<ref>{{Cite news |date=6 October 2023 |title=Lebanon's economic crisis is wrecking the environment, too |newspaper=The Economist |url=https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2022/10/06/lebanons-economic-crisis-is-wrecking-the-environment-too |access-date=25 December 2023 |issn=0013-0613 |archive-date=25 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231225155400/https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2022/10/06/lebanons-economic-crisis-is-wrecking-the-environment-too |url-status=live }}</ref>