On Tuesday, the company responsible for the maintenance of the Naameh landfill decided to halt work, which means stopping the venting of gases emitted from the buried waste.
The gases are carried out through pipes, or what is known as vents, and then are burned at a very high temperature.
Cessation of maintenance work also means stopping the treatment of waste liquid which will lead to groundwater and Ghadir river pollution.
But why did the company decide to go out of business?
The company is owed 18 billion Lebanese Liras by the Lebanese state and 7 million dollars in bank check format.
The company started its work in December 2021 under a 20-day contract after negotiating with the Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR) due to the previous company's cessation of business and the refusal of another to be awarded due to the deterioration of the exchange rate.
At the beginning of 2022, the Council of Ministers assigned the current company to extend its business for an additional year. Still, the year passed, and none of the company's dues were received, according to its sources.
CDR sources say that it is true that the Council of Ministers assigned the company at the beginning of 2022. Still, the signing of the contract was delayed until September 2022. The transfer of dues required the preparation of invoices by the concerned company since the signing of the agreement. This happened as the funds due for December 2021, amounting to two billion and 700 million Liras, were transferred.
LBCI information indicated that the decree related to these funds was issued during the last session of the caretaker government, and the rest of the dues are in two decrees; the first is still in the Ministry of Finance, and the second arrived at the Grand Serail.
The company stopped working after submitting multiple reviews to the Council for Development and Reconstruction. The Council responded to the company's decision by requesting the continuation of the business to run the public utility.
In a field inspection of the Naameh landfill, the company appears to be still running, burning 2,000 cubic meters of buried waste per hour. The burning used to reach about 7,500 cubic meters per hour to prevent an explosion due to gas retention.
Will this ticking bomb lead to faster processing?