Collaborations on Water Security

Beyond the Naked Eye: What Is Polluting the Lebanese Coast?

Dr. Akoury and his team of postdocs and undergrads fished for pharmaceuticals, heavy metals and microplastics in 40 locations across the coastline, hoping to inform future plans for treatment and policymaking.

For a research project funded by the U.S. -Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) Tomorrow’s Leaders Program (TL), Dr. Akoury and his team set out to collect specimens from seawater, sediments, vegetation and soil from 40 locations along the Lebanese coast, from North to South. A previous study last year also explored microplastic pollution around the Palm Islands Natural Reserve.

“The main goal of the research is to investigate the levels of pharmaceuticals, heavy metals and microplastics to identify and assess the sources of health-associated hazards and investigate the most persistent and dominant derivatives,” said Dr. Akoury.

To do so, Dr. Akoury formed an LAU team of two post-doctoral fellows – Drs. Bilal Nehmeh and Fatima Haydous – supported by the Office of Graduate Studies and Research, as well as MEPI-TL undergraduate scholar Zohrab Abrahamian and senior chemistry undergrads Christopher Saab, Mariam Bou Orm, Sara Sabbagh and Bayan Abdlwahab.

Using several spectroscopic and chromatographic techniques, the research team identified and quantified the contaminants and their derivatives. The samples they are currently analyzing are 22 pharmaceutical byproducts, 20 microplastic components and 14 major, toxic-heavy metals such as mercury, lead, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, zinc, nickel and copper, among others.

The research results, together with the methodology, comprehensive analysis and guidelines are slated to be published in peer-reviewed journals. “Ongoing analysis and preliminary results have shown alarming levels of cadmium, lead, arsenic and molybdenum – a chemical element – in wastewater, in addition to contamination with phthalates,” revealed Dr. Akoury.

Phthalates, hormone-disrupting chemicals released by plastics, can interfere with the male sex hormone, reduce female fertility and increase birth defects.

As health safety is a major concern, public awareness should be raised about the effects of water pollution and which beach spots are safe for swimming and fishing once the project is finalized and contaminated areas are defined. Recommendations will vary depending on the location along the Lebanese coast. Strategic plans pertaining to safe waste disposal should also be implemented to reduce the absorption of heavy metals, water treatment, and wastewater management.

One of the most crucial strategies for controlling plastic pollution, said Dr. Akoury, “is by engaging the private sector and encouraging people to use alternatives to plastic products and packaging.” As for the public sector, he confirmed that the research findings will be shared with concerned ministries to help inform and revise the current national plan and implement quality monitoring systems.

Asked whether the study will touch on the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, Dr. Akoury said that the analysis will be focused on chemical contaminants, although the experiments they are acquiring will give some indication if bacteria are present.

Ultimately, the research opens the door to investigating other water sources for contaminants, as well as expanding the study to include air and soil pollution. Specific research findings, such as confirming the presence of heavy metals and phthalates in water, have pushed the researchers to study the pharmaceutical byproducts that could contaminate the water in the areas where pharmaceuticals and hospitals operate.

A USAID-funded Research Project on Industrial Wastewater Management Yields Sustainable Solution

In the final workshop of the project to treat waste streams in the Litani Basin, engineering faculty urge industries to apply new technology.

A research project by LAU in collaboration with the Litani River Authority to provide a sustainable solution to the pollution of the Litani River Basin has yielded an eco-friendly treatment technology that is effective on all organic waste streams.

Spearheaded by LAU’s Associate Professor of Civil Engineering who had secured a grant from the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the project entailed perfecting a treatment method for agri-industrial waste based on a newly developed integrated bio-electrochemical reactor technology, in collaboration with Washington State University, and using the by-product, methane, to generate electricity.

This innovative technique for the biodegradation of organic waste could help the Litani River Authority protect the poor communities in the basin’s region from waterborne diseases, while at the same time providing a much-needed source of energy. It would also ensure a supply of clean water as far as Beirut in answer to water shortages.

As Lebanon’s food processing industries show no incentive to manage waste from their factories, said Dr. Wazne, an alternative was to examine biological treatments to produce a more nutrient-balanced waste stream “that can meet both industry and environmental needs.”

The project was conducted by Dr. Wazne in collaboration with Dr. Haluk Beyenal, professor and associate dean for Research and Graduate Studies at the School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Washington State University; Dr. Stephanie Greige, postdoctoral fellow and research associate at LAU who is a specialist in microbial analysis; and Graduate Research Assistant at LAU’s School of Engineering, Civil Engineering Department, Mohamad Abdallah, in addition to other graduate and undergraduate students.

In the initial phase, the team analyzed the organic materials of various samples from food factories to test the effectiveness of the treatment on each plant.  In June, along with Dr. Moustapha Harb, currently assistant professor of Environmental Engineering at New Mexico Tech, they published their findings on anaerobic co‑digestion of cheese whey and poultry slaughterhouse wastewaters. In the second phase, the researchers improved the upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor – an anaerobic reactor for treating high-strength wastewater ­– by bioelectrochemical enrichment.

On December 6, the School of Engineering held the second workshop sponsored by USAID, during which Dr. Wazne and his team presented experimental results for the treatment of different waste streams from the upper Litani Basin to show the high efficacy of anaerobic digestion, and galvanize industries to take action.

Among the attendees were specialists in wastewater treatment, environmentalists, civil engineers and engineering companies such as CDM Smith and Dar Al-Handasah, representatives from the wine industry, NGOs, and industries from the upper Litani Basin.

In addition to Dr. Wazne and his team, speakers included Dr. Sami Alawieh, chairman and general director of the Litani River Authority, Dr. Michel Khoury, dean of the School of Engineering, and Dr. Harb.

In his welcome address, Dr. Khoury said that wastewater treatment posed a great challenge in light of the serious health problems caused by contamination. Hence, the importance of the Litani Industrial Wastewater Treatment Project, as it “addresses a critical and operational concern and is therefore in line with the university’s vision to help and cooperate with the community in solving one of the country’s chronic and grave problems.”

In turn, Dr. Alawieh spoke about the partnership between USAID, LAU and the Litani River Authority that, since 2018, has aimed to lay the foundations for addressing industrial pollution in the upper Litani Basin, “the most dangerous among the river’s pollutants.”

Dr. Alawieh attributed the pollution largely to “administrations that approve licenses despite non-compliance with the set conditions, under the pretext of promoting Lebanese industry and developing the Beqaa region.” Wastewater management is costly, he added, but anaerobic digestion offers an affordable and sustainable option.

Noting that there were 600 factories and institutions that pour contaminated industrial wastewater into the upper Litani stream, Dr. Wazne spoke at length about the proposed treatment technique, namely biodegradation of organic waste that does not use fossil fuels with a potential saving of up to 1 kW/kg COD while also producing about 13.5 MJ (megajoules) of energy methane/kg of COD extracted, which can be used to generate power, via methane generation.

More than reducing the flow of pollutants into the river, the importance of this technology lies in the fact that it does not require energy or chemicals, he added, urging the funding institutions to support the establishment of a pilot treatment plant in the upper Litani Basin to demonstrate the effectiveness of anaerobic digestion at the industrial level.

“I received two visits from professionals in the industry who are interested in applying the developed technology in the field, at a factory in the upper Litani Basin,” said Dr. Wazne, “and I am pursuing this opportunity vigorously for the benefit of the community and to highlight the importance of the work being conducted at LAU.”

This project addresses SDGs 3, 6, 7, 11 and 14 of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, namely Good Health and Well-Being, Clean Water and Sanitation, Affordable and Clean Energy, Sustainable Cities and Communities, and Life Below Water.

To browse more scholarly output by the LAU community, visit our open-access digital archive, the Lebanese American University Repository (LAUR).

	The Litani Industrial Wastewater Treatment Project, said Dr. Khoury, is in line with the university’s vision to help the community resolve one of the country’s chronic and grave problems.
	Dr. Wazne and his team presented the experimental results for the treatment of different waste streams from the upper Litani Basin to show the high efficacy of anaerobic digestion and galvanize industries to take action.

LAU Implements First Phase of Sustainable Waste Management of the Litani Basin

Engineering faculty members make headway in tackling the ecological and health hazards posed by pollution of the Litani Basin.

The pollution of the Litani River Basin, a vital source of irrigation and water supply with a potential for generating hydroelectric power that extends from the Beqaa to South Lebanon, has for many years been an untreated environmental and health disaster.

Recognizing the urgent need to reach a sustainable solution in managing the organic industrial waste contaminating the basin, LAU has been collaborating with the Litani River Authority to advance the use of anaerobic digestion of industrial wastewater discharge, and has now fully implemented the first phase of the three-phase project.

Anaerobic digestion is an innovative and effective technology for the biodegradation of organic waste whose by-product – methane gas, a cleaner fossil fuel ­– provides a much-needed alternative source of energy.

Spearheaded by LAU’s Associate Professor Mahmoud Wazne, who had obtained a PEER research grant from the US Agency for International Development (USAID) for his proposal, the project will help the Litani River Authority provide clean water to residents of the Beqaa valley, and eventually Beirut, and relieve mainly poor communities in the region from water shortages and waterborne diseases.

“In this initial phase,” explained Dr. Wazne, “our team of LAU graduate students and industrialists collected and analyzed the organic materials of various samples from food factories to test the effectiveness of the treatment on each plant individually and collectively through mono digestion (single substrate) and co-digestion (combined substrates). We succeeded in improving the quality of the product and will be publishing our findings.”

The second phase, he added, “will be devoted to improving the treatment method based on a newly developed integrated bio-electrochemical reactor technology, in cooperation with Washington State University.” Ultimately, the project will raise “public awareness about anaerobic digestion and train young researchers on this sustainable treatment option.”

Dr. Wazne presented his findings and demonstrated anaerobic digestion for industrial organic wastewater to the Litani River Authority, Lebanese and American experts, and industries from the upper Litani Basin in the first of a series of workshops sponsored by USAID.  

Speakers at the online workshop, in addition to Dr. Wazne, included Dean of the School of Engineering Lina Karam, Chairman and General Director of the Litani River Authority Sami Alaweih and LAU Associate Professor of Civil Engineering Mustapha Harb.

The workshop covered the fundamentals and importance of anaerobic digestion in the production of biogas, a mixture of gases including methane, to show that not only is this method cost-effective and eco-friendly but can be a viable source of electric power.

Praising the cooperation with local and international partners – primarily LAU – and recognizing the magnitude of the problem, Dr. Alawieh said that the Litani River Authority had come to an agreement with hundreds of factories to observe environmental standards, but only 90 of them had complied by installing treatment facilities with uncertain results. In his view, this confirms the need for a unified opinion on the wastewater treatment mechanism to be used.

In order to establish urgent dialogue between all parties concerned, noted Dr. Wazne, the university has made headway with the research “despite all challenges, particularly the pressing economic crisis in Lebanon.” He also highlighted the resilience of the research team and the strong support provided by the Department of Civil Engineering.

In parallel with this project, LAU’s Dr. Harb is conducting a study on advancing innovative and sustainable wastewater treatment technologies for improved water reuse practices in Lebanon and across the Mediterranean basin, with funding from the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Program.

Dean Karam thanked USAID for providing funding in support of this impactful project. “We are very proud to have such life-changing work being pursued under the supervision of Dr. Wazne in collaboration with talented students and researchers in our School of Engineering with the aim to provide much-needed clean water to vulnerable communities in Lebanon,” she said.

“This project also contributes to the United Nations’ vital Sustainable Development Goals,” she added, “including Good Health and Well-Being (SDG 3), Clean Water and Sanitation (SDG 6), Affordable and Clean Energy (SDG 7), Sustainable Cities and Communities (SDG 11), and Life Underwater (SDG 14).”

	The team also collected wastewater samples from various food factories including a cheese plant.
	Organic industrial waste contaminating the Litani River Basin has led to severe health and environmental hazards. (Photo courtesy of the Litani River Authority)
	Dr. Wazne and his team of LAU graduate students and industrialists collect sludge samples at the wastewater treatment plant in Bkassine.