Garbage export
officially flops

Chinook did not deliver documents on time

The Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR) said that the British firm Chinook Urban Mining, which was in charge of finding an export destination for Lebanon’s waste, withdrew its offer to manage the export process.

“Chinook’s deadline to present documents that prove Russia’s formal acceptance to receive Lebanon’s trash ended on Friday February 19, at ten o’clock,” a statement by the CDR said.

The company apologized for not being able to hand in an authenticated consent by the Russian Government on time and withdrew its offer. “The CDR will take the required administrative procedures to inform the company that the initial approval it gave the company was revoked and will confiscate the bank bond the company deposited,” according to the statement. Chinook paid $2.5 million as a bond to guarantee it will find an export destination. Rumors broke out last week that Chinook fabricated Russia’s approval, which sparked civil and political uproar.

Prime Minister Tamam Salam called for a ministerial committee tasked with following up on the garbage crisis to meet Saturday to study the alternatives.

Nabil Jisr, Chairman of the CDR said: “We will participate in tomorrow’s meeting as planned.” Last week, the Government approved a decision to wire $50 million to the CDR to pay Chinook should it receive Russia’s approval. Jisr said: “These funds are still at the Ministry of Finance and we weren’t planning to request them before we get the approval.”

The ministerial committee is expected to discuss landfilling garbage, after the option was scrapped for the first time due to municipalities’ disapproval.

A prior ministerial plan had asked the CDR to start restoring the Burj Hammoud and Dahr al Ain dumpsters and transform them into landfills. “We haven’t begun their restoration,” Jisr said.