October 17, 2026
The Minister of the Environment, Tamara El-Zein, placed the environmental file at the heart of the recovery and reconstruction process in Lebanon, stressing that addressing the effects of war on nature and biodiversity is a basic condition for achieving sustainable reconstruction. This came in a speech delivered by the representative of the President of the Republic, General Joseph Aoun, during the “Leaders’ Summit on Biodiversity” held in the Armenian capital, Yerevan, under the slogan “Leaders for Nature,” prior to the start of the work of the Seventeenth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity.
Al-Zein began her speech by expressing her happiness at participating in Armenia, which she described as “Lebanon’s friendly country,” thanking the organizing authorities for the good reception and preparation. She pointed out that Lebanon, despite its small area, has a rich natural and cultural heritage, as its forests, mountains, wetlands, coastal and marine ecosystems, and migration corridors represent an essential pillar of regional biodiversity and environmental connectivity.
However, the Minister warned of the increasing pressures facing this heritage due to climate change, land degradation, scarcity of water resources, economic crises, and recurring fires, in addition to the disastrous repercussions of the Israeli war on Lebanon. She revealed that World Bank estimates indicate that losses in the environmental sector during the years 2023 and 2024 exceeded $512 million, without counting the losses in 2026, describing the extent of the damage to the natural environments as “actual environmental annihilation.”
Al-Zein explained that thousands of hectares of forests, natural reserves, agricultural lands, and natural habitats were destroyed as a result of the Israeli army’s bombing with white phosphorus and the spraying of glyphosate pesticide over large areas. This led to a sharp decline in biodiversity, disruption of the environmental balance, and increased fragility of local communities. She stressed that protecting biodiversity goes beyond nature conservation to be a pillar of food and water security, public health, climate adaptation, and sustainable development.
Despite the magnitude of the challenges, Al-Zein affirmed Lebanon’s firm commitment to environmental work, pointing to the achievement of tangible progress over the past 18 months in the areas of environmental governance, climate planning, circular economy, solid waste management, and sustainable treatment of war rubble, in addition to expanding the network of protected areas, promoting environmental citizenship and preserving biodiversity. In this context, she noted that the Council of Ministers approved, a week ago, the national strategy and action plan for biodiversity for the next five years.
Al-Zein concluded her speech by emphasizing the centrality of restoring ecosystems in post-war recovery efforts, stressing that restoring degraded environments and rehabilitating lands cannot be treated as secondary issues. An explicit invitation was sent to Lebanon’s partners to support the path of reforms, keep pace with interventions in the affected sectors, and support the advancement of the environmental sector in the country.
