As part of the “Reviving the Upper Litani River and Qaraoun Lake” project, funded by DIMFE, the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon (SPNL) held a coordination meeting with municipalities that have declared Himas within the project area — Lala, Qaraoun, Saghbine, Kefraya, Mansoura, Kherbet Qanafar, and Ain Zebdeh — alongside Ammiq municipality.
The meeting provided a crucial platform to reaffirm the Hima concept as a community-based model for managing natural resources sustainably, while also introducing participating municipalities to SPNL’s environmental programs designed to support their local sustainability goals.
During the session, SPNL awarded the Hima Certificate to the newest Hima in the area, Saghbine, marking another milestone in Lebanon’s growing network of community-led conservation zones.
One of the key highlights of the meeting was a discussion on the environmental dangers of disposing used cooking oil in drains and waterways — a silent yet significant pollutant threatening the Litani River ecosystem. SPNL experts presented innovative and sustainable methods to collect and recycle used cooking oil, demonstrating how local initiatives can transform pollution into opportunity.
In a collective commitment to action, the municipalities agreed to establish a household collection system for used cooking oil. Each municipality will oversee collection efforts using barrels provided by SPNL, and the collected oil will be transferred to a recycling facility — turning waste into a valuable and reusable resource.
This collaborative effort not only tackles a major source of river pollution but also promotes circular economy practices across the Upper Litani Basin, reinforcing SPNL’s mission to empower communities through the Hima approach — where conservation, innovation, and local engagement come together for a cleaner and more resilient environment.
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