| By Mario Nasrallah |
Amid the many crises Lebanon faces, people tend to forget what’s right in front of them, consuming their mountains, polluting their ecosystems, and damaging their long term health and well-being. That’s one of the reasons we turned our focus to the issue of illegal and unregulated quarrying in this year’s Youth4Governance project.
Lebanon’s quarry sector is a significant source of corruption and environmental degradation. Despite laws and regulations intended to control this sector, enforcement has been weak, and the Environment Ministry has struggled to collect fines and dues from violators.
Aiming to tackle this issue head-on, we partnered with the Environment Ministry to support its efforts in regulating the quarry sector. Our goal was to assist in collecting the long-overdue fines and ensuring that quarry operations were held accountable for their environmental impact.
From the beginning, we faced doubts and skepticism. Many believed that our efforts would be futile, given the entrenched interests and corruption in the sector. But we were determined to prove them wrong. We conducted thorough legal and policy research, developed strategies, and engaged with stakeholders to build a case for stronger enforcement.
Our work began to show results. We installed a brand-new tech system in the ministry to enable staff to access all the needed information about each quarry in just a few of clicks. In addition, we created dashboards to visualise the complicated data related to this sector, helping staff better make sense of what’s going on and make data-driven decisions. This system is mostly automated; it can fill, print, and monitor every collection order issued by the Ministry for maximum transparency and minimal effort. Such tools make environmental monitoring more efficient, enhancing the capability of the Environment Ministry and setting a precedent for how technology can support good governance in other sectors.
While our project is just one step in a long journey, it has made a tangible difference. It has shown that change is possible, even in the face of significant challenges. More importantly, it has given us, the Youth4Governance interns, a sense of purpose and accomplishment. If we have to eventually leave Lebanon, we will at least know we tried to make a positive impact on our country.
Our work is far from over. The fight for environmental justice in Lebanon continues, and we hope that future generations will build on our efforts. We have laid the groundwork, and now it is up to others to carry the torch.
But, with determination and collective effort, we can overcome even the most daunting challenges.