Lebanon, like all other developing countries, suffers greatly when it comes to pollution. Considering water pollution in specific, the lack of proper wastewater treatment is one of the major factors affecting the quality of the country’s much-needed water. The infrastructure is very old and malfunctioning and needs a lot of rehabilitation. Also, Lebanon is expected to face major water scarcity soon if the water and wastewater sector isn’t properly managed. 

It was reported by the Lebanon Crisis Response Plan (LCRP) 2015-2016 that Lebanon generates an estimated 310 Mm³/year of wastewater of which 250 Mm³/year are municipal and 50 Mm³/year are industrial[1] with an estimated total Biological Oxygen Demand of about 119,348 tons[2].

35% to 50% of untreated wastewater in Lebanon gets infiltrated to aquifers and then pumped again for agricultural and domestic use because of the lack of discharge networks and effective treatment facilities. Most houses are still using septic tanks or draining wastewater into boreholes that will ultimately cause the wastewater to reach groundwater[3].

The wastewater sector in Lebanon suffers from chronic underinvestment, combined with a weak institutional and governance structure and an insufficient tariff framework. There are eight medium wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in Lebanon, and seventeen small plants. Therefore, wastewater  treatment  is  almost  non-existent  in  Lebanon  with  only  8%  of  the population actually served, while  60%  of  the  population  is  connected  to  a  sewage  collection network[4]. Only one WWTP in Lebanon is generating water for irrigation.

Within MAIA TAQA project, a pilot project will consist of a construction of a Waste Water Treatment Plant for the the Industrial Research Institute (IRI) building, and the reuse of the treated water for irrigation purposes.