POLLUTED RIVER POSES HEALTH THREAT TO BOURJ HAMMOUD
By Andrew Wander

Daily Star
d=1&categ_id=1&article_id=95712
Sept 5 2008
Lebanon

Local officials say government not helping

BEIRUT: A polluted river running through a crowded suburb of Beirut
could pose a serious risk to the health of people living nearby, but
the government is doing nothing to combat the issue, local leaders
said Thursday. The Beirut River runs through Beirut’s mostly Armenian
district of Bourj Hammoud, and dries up to little more than a trickle
during summer, exposing piles of rotting garbage and sewage washed
down during the winter months.

The dried river bed is full of raw sewage, as well as plastic bottles
and rotting vegetables, residents say. It also attracts vermin
and reptiles, and produces a deeply unpleasant smell as the refuse
decomposes under the hot summer sun.

Officials at the Bourj Hammoud municipality say they are not receiving
the help they need from the government to solve the issue. Raffi
Kokoghlanian, the deputy mayor of Bourj Hammoud said: "There is a
major crisis at the river. Most villages from the source to the shore
discharge sewage into the river, and this is creating major health
problems for the residents. But the responsibility to clean the river
does not lie with the municipality. It belongs to the government and
they don’t have the resources or possibly the inclination to clean
the area. It is actually illegal for another party to clean the river."

Contact with polluted water contaminated by raw sewage can lead to
a range of health problems, including leptospirosis, a bacterial
infection that causes jaundice and even death if left untreated. The
disease is particularly associated with vermin-infested waterways. In
addition, contact with water contaminated with human waste can also
lead to typhoid, which usually becomes more common in Lebanon at the
end of the summer.

Because the river flows into the sea, it also contributes to Lebanon’s
ongoing problem with coastal pollution, which poses a risk to swimmers
and wildlife. Scientific studies have shown that contact with polluted
sea water can lead to several health problems, including skin diseases
and diarrhea.

Ribal Mansour, a 25-year-old student, says that something should
be done about the levels of pollution in the river. "It smells
very bad. The water goes out into the sea, taking with it millions
of bacteria. It’s a risk to health. In the summer it is worse than
the winter. I think it happens because all the factories drain their
pollution into the river. You see rats and water snakes in there. They
should close the factories, and someone should clean up the mess."

Kokoghlanian agrees that there is a pressing need for the situation
to be resolved soon.

But he said because all the villages along the course of the river
contribute to the pollution and sewage problem, finding a solution
will require a coordinated effort of various local and national
authorities. "We have spoken to the authorities millions of times,
but nothing is done," he said. "This is a major health problem. It’s
a problem we cannot solve alone. There must be cooperation. The
government must take a major decision if this is to be solved."

Officials from the Environment Ministry were unavailable to comment
on the situation Thursday.