“We have reached a solution in five out of six regions, however, we still did not find contractors willing to treat solid waste in Beirut and its suburbs,” Machnouk said during a news conference at the ministry. He added that Naameh dump should “rest,” but it will not be completely shut down. “Instead of dumping all the waste in Naameh, it (the waste) will be divided among several landfills located across Lebanon.” The minister said that the Beirut waste issue will be addressed to the ministerial committee headed by Prime Minister Tammam Salam. Machnouk also expressed gratitude to Naameh residents for “being patient and bearing this burden for 18 years.” The Naameh landfill, located in the Chouf district, was supposed to be shut down in 2003, however the deadline was consecutively pushed back by governments, and the landfill ended up being overfilled.
