(snip)Industrial wastes, which may contain large quantities of similar materials, are easily recycled. Most industrial wastes are reasonably inert, but some are classed as toxic or hazardous and must be handled with special care (10). It is thought that very little industrial waste in Lebanon is hazardous (7). Assuming the level of waste generated as 10 Kg/employee/year from 140,000 employees (6), the total industrial waste arising in Lebanon are of the order of 515,000t/year (8). Most of this originates from Mount-Lebanon (57%), and this is clustered in Baabda, Metn and Kesrouan. They originate from small industries, many of which are sited in residential areas, and their waste is mixed with domestic waste (11). There are no facilities in Lebanon for the disposal of hazardous wastes. Industrial wastes are dumped in municipal dumps or anywhere that seems convenient. In addition to the mentioned wastes, commercial, construction wastes, and vehicle tires consist a significant percentage of solid wastes, and their management is difficult (10). It remains a matter of great concern that during the war, a shipment of hazardous wastes was imported to the country, but was never treated nor properly disposed of. 15,800 drums of waste are thought to have been imported, buried in both coastal and inland hilly areas. The drums are thought to contain pesticides, heavy metals, halogenated phenolic compounds, PAH, PCB, dioxins, rejected pharmaceuticals and aniline, as well as wastes from chemical weapons and explosive materials. There are many substantiated rumors about the damage that these toxic wastes are doing, including the death of 300 sheep in Zahle according to the environmental resources management of The World Bank. There is a great concern that water supplies may be poisoned in years to come as the content of the drums slowly leaks out and find their way to ground and surface water.(/snip)
- "Solid & Liquid Waste Management Issues ," - Prepared by Najib Haddad, Last modified: July 03, 2003, Lebanese-American University Student Report http://csrd.lau.edu.lb/Publications/StudentReports/Solid%20&%20Liquid%20Waste%20Management%20Issues.htm.
1998 : (LEBANON PHARMACEUTICAL PLANT IN BEKAA VALLEY MAY BE WORLD'S LARGEST PRODUCER OF COUNTERFEIT DRUGS) Lebanon 1998: Interpol, the international police agency, says a giant factory in the Bekaa Valley may be the world's largest producer of counterfeit medication, including Viagra. An Israeli Health Ministry's spokesperson told the Jerusalem Post, "According to experts 80% of the Viagra sold world-wide on the black-market is not the real drug. What is ironic is that the black-market pills cost twice the price of Viagra gotten by prescription." - "First, Do No Harm," by Conrad F. Meier, Tech Central Station, Sept 5, 2003 (The author is Senior Fellow in Health Policy, The Heartland Institute, and Managing Editor, Health Care News.)
MAY 7, 1998 : (SYRIA USES CROP DUSTERS TO COMBAT AGRICULTURAL PESTS IN LEBANON'S BEKAA VALLEY) The agriculture ministry is launching a four-day campaign to fight the "Suna" bug, a dangerous parasite that is currently affecting wheat and barley crops in the northern Bekaa, using a special plane provided by the Syrian authorities. The campaign had been organized by the ministries of agricultures in Beirut and Damascus as part of a Lebanese-Syrian cooperation agreement. - "Aerial spraying of pesticides in Bekaa," News from Beirut, Lebanon.com, May 7 1998 http://www.lebanon.com/news/local/1998/5/7.htm
MAY 7, 1998 : (LEBANON : MP SUKKARIEH CLAIMS EMPERIMENTAL PHARMACEUTICALS HAVE BEEN IMPORTED TO LEBANON TO BE TESTED ON LEBANESE) MP Ismail Sukkarieh is preparing a list of alledgedly illegal practices relating to pharmaceuticals. The list, he said, would be presented to judicial authorities. This comes as a response to a statement last week by the association of medicine importers which said there were no illegal or expired drugs in the country. Sukkarieh said the association had no right to decide which drugs were safe and accused it of smuggling experimental drugs into the country to be tested on Lebanese citizens. - "MP Sukkarich and drug importers," News from Beirut, Lebanon.com, May 7 1998 http://www.lebanon.com/news/local/1998/5/7.htm.
(* My note : Looks like a pretty good place to hide things to me.)