field infrastructure and camp improvement programme environmental health response plan in the 12 palestine refugee camps in lebanon (2018-2021) with inventory and needs assessment environmental health response plan in the 12 palestine refugee camps in lebanon (2018-2021) with inventory and needs assessment © 2018 UNRWA Inventory and Needs Assessment on Environmental Infrastructure and Environmental Health in the 12 Palestine refugee camps in Lebanon, Response Plan 2018 – 2021 by Field Infrastructure and Camp Improvement Programme (FICIP) Cover Photo: Child walking in a street in Shatila Palestine refugee camp, Beirut © 2017 UNRWA Photo by Carlos Pérez, Scopio. © 2017 UNRWA 5 foreword I. Foreword Launched in June 2016, the UNRWA Environmental Health Strategy 2016 – 2021 set the strategic direction for tackling major environmental infrastructure and environmental health issues present in the 12 Palestine refugee camps in Lebanon. The overall objective is to improve the living conditions of the Palestine refugee population and to better manage the natural resources they depend on. Between October 2016 and November 2017, an inventory and needs assessment was conducted in the 12 camps to identify the major environmental infrastructure and environmental health challenges. The findings helped to shape the recommendations for the coming four years. The Response Plan presented in this document, with more than 190 proposed projects aimed to reinforce the efficiency of the operation and maintenance of environmental health services in the camps, to engage in sustainable environmentally-friendly solutions and above all, include all stakeholders and refugees in the centre of the decision-making process. The holistic approach adopted throughout the development of this document is reflected in all proposed interventions and recognizes the importance of collective action for shared solutions. Thinking “out of the box” was the vision adopted during the inventory and needs assessment, involving stakeholders across a wide range of sectors and institutions. The principles of sustainability, efficiency and innovation, were embraced throughout the entire process and are also incorporated in the interventions outlined in the Response Plan. Today, the Earth must be considered as a whole, where challenges are shared and comprehensive solutions are developed collectively. This holistic approach to address the environmental health issues in the 12 camps is the thread that was woven throughout the entire process of the inventory and needs assessment and is integral in the recommendations outlined in this Response Plan. Shatila Palestine refugee camp was created shortly after the first picture of Earth was taken from the space, in 1946. Thinking global and acting local, particularly in the context of the Palestine refugee camps in Lebanon, has never been so relevant. There is no planet B and therefore we must work together to find innovative solutions to the challenges we face today. The Palestine refugee camps in Lebanon are not isolated entities and environmental threats know no boundaries. On the other hand, advancements for Palestine refugees will be felt on both sides. Therefore, this Response Plan was developed in an integrated manner, with Palestine, Lebanese and international partners. Inspired by the Palestinian poet, Mahmoud Darwish who wrote that “without hope, we are lost” and also by the Lebanese author Amin Maalouf, translated into English “New challenges, new solutions1” the Response Plan aims to provide hope through innovative solutions for today and for future generations. 1 « A de nouveaux défis, de nouvelles solutions », Amin Maalouf executive summary 6 II. Special acknowledgement A special thanks to all persons within UNRWA for their support, expertise and time in the preparation of this document. A special thanks to all persons from the state, private, academic and humanitarian sectors who have contributed to the inventory and needs assessment contained in this report. The development and production of the Environmental Infrastructure and Environmental Health Response Plan 2018-2021 has been generously supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, the German Cooperation and UNICEF. UNRWA is a United Nations agency established by the General Assembly in 1949 and mandated to provide assistance and protection to some 5 million registered Palestine refugees. Its mission is to help Palestine refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank and the Gaza Strip achieve their full human development potential, pending a just and lasting solution to their plight. UNRWA services encompass education, health care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure and improvement, and microfinance. 7 list of acronyms and abbreviations III. List of Acronyms and Abbreviations AA Adjacent Areas BOD Biochemical Oxygen Demand CAO Chief Area Officer CDR Council for Development and Reconstruction CIP Camp Improvement Plan CLA Central Lebanon Area COD Chemical Oxygen Demand COP Conference of the Parties CSO Camp Services Officer CSES Centre for Sustainable Environmental Sanitation DRU Donor Relations Unit EDL Electricité du Liban EHS Environmental Health Strategy EIEH Environmental Infrastructure and Environmental Health EU European Union FAO Food and Agriculture Organization FICIP Field Infrastructure and Camp Improvement Programme GBV Gender-based Violence GDP Gross Domestic Product GEF Global Environmental Facility / UNEP GF General Fund GIS Geographical Information Systems GoL Government of Lebanon HDPE High-density Polyethylene HH Household ICIP Infrastructure and Camp Improvement Programme ICRC International Committee of the Red Cross IPCC Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ISWM Integrated Solid Waste Management IT Information Technology IW Industrial Waste IWM Integrated Waste Management IWRM Integrated Water Resources Management list of acronyms and abbreviations 8 JMP Joint Monitoring Programme LARI Lebanese Agricultural Research Institute LB Lebanese Pound LCEC Lebanese Council for Energy Conservation (hosted by MoEW) LCRP Lebanon Crisis Response Plan LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design LFO Lebanon Field Office LIBNOR Lebanese Standards Institution LRC Lebanese Red Cross MAR Managed Artificial Recharge M&E Monitoring and Evaluation MENA Middle East and North Africa Region MoE Ministry of Environment (Lebanon) MoEW Ministry of Energy and Water (Lebanon) MoPH Ministry of Public Health (Lebanon) MoSA Ministry of Social Affairs (Lebanon) MRLs Maximum Residues Limits MSW Municipal Solid Waste N/A Not Applicable NGO Non-Governmental Organization NWSS National Water Sector Strategy (MoEW) NPIC National Pesticides Information Center OMSAR Office of the Minister of State for Administrative Reform OW Other Waste PAH Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon PC Popular Committee PCBs Polychlorinated Biphenyls (POP) PEX Cross-linked Polyethylene PHC Public Health Centre PIO Programme Information Office PLD Procurement and Logistic Department POP Persistent Organic Pollutant PPR Pipe Penetration Radar PRL Palestine Refugee from Lebanon PRS Palestine Refugee from Syria 9 list of acronyms and abbreviations PSO Programme Support Office RAMSAR Convention on Wetlands of International Importance REPAC Regional Programme for the Improvement of Living Conditions of Palestine refugee camps RP Response Plan RSS Relief and Social Services SAI Saida Area SC Stockholm Convention SDC Social Development Centre SDG Sustainable Development Goal SEA Strategic Environmental Assessment SMIS Shelter Management Information System SW Solid Waste SWM Solid Waste Management TOT Training of Trainers UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNEP United Nations Environment Programme UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund UNHCR United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees UNRCO United Nations Resident Coordinator Office UNRWA United Nations Relief Works Agency for Palestine refugees in the Near East UNRWA MTS UNRWA Medium Term Strategy 2016 – 2021 UPM Umwelt Projekt Management UV Ultraviolet WASH Water, Sanitation and Hygiene WE Water Establishments (Lebanon) WHO World Health Organization WinS WASH in Schools WMO World Meteorology Organization project coordination 10 IV. Project coordination Christian Guillot, Environmental Health Expert Authors Ahmad Hamdan, Hydrogeologist Christian Guillot, Environmental Health Expert Daoud Korman, Deputy Chief Field Infrastructure and Camp Improvement Programme Emilio Sassine, Habitat and Energy Specialist Mahdi Wehbi, GIS Analyst Mahmoud Kassem, WASH Project Manager Mohamad Abou Daher, GIS Specialist Mohamed Abdel Al, Chief Field Infrastructure and Camp Improvement Programme Nabil Yacoub, Waste Management Specialist Nidal Ayyoub, Head of Environmental Health Unit Thierry Bussard, Hydrogeology Expert Contributions Ahmad Abdullah, Area Sanitation and Maintenance Engineer (Bekaa) Ahmad Al Ali, Sanitation Foreman Ali Marouf, Area Sanitation Officer (Beirut) Gwyn Lewis, Deputy Director of UNRWA Affairs in Lebanon Ibrahim Karzoun, Construction Engineer and Shelter Rehabilitation Project Manager Ismail Moussa, Admin Officer Issam Samara, Sanitation Engineer Khodor Iskandarani, Architect/Planner Mohamad Taha, Area Sanitation Officer (Tyre) Mohamad Zueiter, Management Engineer Musa Al Ali, Area Sanitation Officer (Tripoli) Mustapha El Mawed, Camp Improvement Project Manager Omar Ghayad, Environmental Specialist Rachid Ajjawi, Assistance FICIP Salim Hamieh, Mechanical Engineer Sodki Miari, Area Sanitation Officer (Saida) 11 executive