Key civilian infrastructure such as power plants, seaports, airport and fuel depots have been damaged during the ongoing hostilities in the Middle East. This could pose acute environmental pollution risks to the local population as well as to relief workers, and add significantly to the already existing major humanitarian burden of the Lebanon crisis.
There is also an oil spill of an estimated quantity of 10,000 – 15,000 tons of medium/heavy fuel oil which has contaminated 150 km north of the source of pollution (Jiyeh).
The Joint UNEP/OCHA Environment Unit (Joint Environment Unit) is the United Nations mechanism to mobilize and coordinate the international response to environmental emergencies and natural disasters with major environmental impacts. In situations such as the current crisis, the Joint Environment Unit’s focus is to identify those acute environmental issues posing the greatest potential impact to human life and welfare, and provide practical technical support and solutions to mitigate them.
Updates from the Joint UNEP OCHA Environment Unit
Satellite Imagery
The Lebanese Government and several international institutions expressed the need for satellite images to be able to assess the full extent of the damage caused by the recent oil spill. As a consequence, the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters was activated on 29 of July by the European Commission to obtain such images free of charge for the benefit of the affected population and response / clean-up activities.
The Joint Environment Unit has been circulating these images to interested parties and will begin posting them below.
Some images can be downloaded at http://www.zki.dlr.de/applications/2006/lebanon/lebanon_2006_en.html.
Key links
European Commission Civil Protection
European Commission Humanitarian Aid Office
International Maritime Organization
IUCN
Oceanography Center of Cyprus
OCHA Lebanon Page
Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Response Center for the Mediterranean Sea
United Nations Environment Programme