Refugee demand for tented settlements more than quadrupled in just two years, according to preliminary results from an impact assessment report by the Ministry of Environment (MoE). The report will be published at the end of August.
Solid waste produced by refugees has increased by 16 percent since the beginning of the crisis to reach 324,000 tons yearly. This led to the expansion of random dumps and landfills. According to the Ministry of Finance, municipality expenditures on solid waste management rose by 40 percent in 2013, compared to the previous year.
Water consumption for each Syrian refugee is between 64 and 104 liters per day. This has pushed demand for water up 12 percent on a national level. The increase in demand drove water suppliers to drill new wells, which hiked their operational cost.
The amount of waste water increased by 14 percent last year, to reach 56 million cubic meters. Also leading to an increase in operational cost and maintenance of wastewater networks by 50 percent in the past two years.
Air pollution has also gone up as the presence of refugees is affecting transport, energy, and heating sectors. Results showed a 20 percent increase in pollutant emissions. Nitrogen oxide grew by ten percent due to excessive use of power generators.
Affected ecological systems include al Kabir, Ostwan, al Bared, and Zahrani rivers.
The report was funded by the European Union-backed Environmental Governance Program in collaboration with the UN Development Program (UNDP). The report, which began last May, is based on two parts: Determining the environmental impact within essential sectors, and preparing an administrative plan to diminish its effects.
As of May, Lebanon accounted for 37 percent of all Syrian refugees in all countries, representing one third of its population. This amounts to a 1.4 million person increase in population.
The report said that due to the rise in rent costs, Syrian refugees have been forced to move into tents. The number of informal tented settlements reached 1,224 in 2014, reducing agricultural space especially in the Bekaa and Akkar. Around 15 percent of refugees live in informal tented settlements, expanding horizontally on land plots.