The current Lebanese government did not earn the trust of the Lebanese people. We cannot entrust them with the execution of any project knowing that the Bisri Dam project had many problematic facets from its onset:

1.       The environment and health hazards:

a.       The construction of the dam will destroy thousands of acres of trees and plantations, in a period where Lebanon is looking for agricultural food safety proposals.

b.       In order to fill the dam, this project will resource the water from Al Qaraoun Lake, a source that has been already documented to be polluted with untreatable cyanobacteria.

c.       The dam lies on a complex and tectonically active area. The presence of fault lines within the region makes the dam additionally dangerous.

2.       Numerous archeological sites are located in the area; the construction of the Bisri dam Valley will wipe forever all evidence of cultural heritage.

3.       In addition to a devastating health crisis facing the COVID-19 pandemic, the country is currently experiencing the most challenging economic crisis that necessitates prioritizing expenditures. Instead of funding a questionable dam on reliability and return on investment, the government needs to prioritize its spending on most needed projects such as fixing the electricity issue.

4.       With previous experiences where hundreds of millions of dollars spent on 4 failed dams (Brissa Danieh, Ballaa Batroun, Mseylha Batroun, Janeh Keserwan), experts recommend less intrusive alternatives based on the country’s natural replenishment of groundwater aquifers with rainfall.

We ask the World Bank to reject any time extension and insist on the reallocation of Bisri Dam funding for other priorities in Lebanon.