Oil Spill In Lebanon Is Environmental Terrorism

[RestoreGore]

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AFP/File/Nicholas Asfouri

Oil Spill Threatens Lebanon Coast
Haro Chakmakjian, AFP

http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2006/07/27/oilspill_pla.html?category=travel&guid=20060727163030

July 27, 2006 — A Lebanese NGO has launched an international appeal for help to combat the environmental crisis caused by a huge oil spill south of Beirut, more than two weeks into an Israeli air war.

"The escalating Israeli attacks on Lebanon did not only kill its civilians and destroy its infrastructure, but it is also annihilating the environment," warned the Green Line Association.

It said an air strike two weeks ago on Jiyeh power plant which serves southern Lebanon had resulted in a 15,000-ton oil spill.
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The areas hit hardest by this oil spill which was the result of an Israeli bomb attack on their electricity and tanks which resulted in 15,000 tons of oil spilling throughout the length of their coastline, have now cost the inhabitants there their livelihoods. This once thriving tourist and fishing area that is virtually one of the cradles of civilization, is now experiencing the effects of environmental terrorism. There is no other way to explain this. What the Israeli government did was not to take out some terrorist scum hiding in brush. What they did was to completely destroy the environmental balance of a thriving community that depended upon the sea for it's life. That isn't a casualty of war, that is a deliberate and heartless act of revenge.

One of the main cities feeling the effect of this is Byblos (which is the ancient Greek word for papyrus,) known as one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world, also believed to have been the first city ruled by the Phoenicians. The city became a popular trade route and prospered with Egypt supplying it with much in wealth (papyrus, gold, linen) in exchange for its cedar and cypress wood which they used for ships. After 1000 BC the region was invaded by the Romans, Alexander the Great, the Persians, the Byzantines, the Arabs (Saladin,) and the Crusaders. The ruins from that period were unfortunately lost due to materials buildings were made of then, and because they had been covered long ago through the effects of time.

The greatest accomplishment given to this area was the spreading of the Phoenician a;phabet, which is the basis of the one we use today. The Romans spread it throughout the Mediterranean, as did the Greeks as well. The alphabet we use today is therefore the Roman adaptation of the Greek adaptation of the Phoenician adaptation of the original Semitic alphabet.

The city known in Arabic as Jbeil is 22 miles north of Beirut. One of the main tourist attractions is the Crusader castle. From the roof of one of the outer walls there is an excellent view over the site, the nearby beaches, and down the coast toward Beirut. Surrounding the dominating Crusader castle are a wide variety of ruins... the remains of huts from the fifth millennium BC, a few third-millennium-BC temples, tombs and an obelisk temple from the second millennium BC, shrines and a rebuilt theater from Roman times, and some very impressive Medieval walls.

You may ask why I decided to write all of this in regards to the current oil spill. It was to give you perspective into the beauty and deep rich history of this region that is now lost with one fell swoop of a bomber. This is what happens when people hate. This is what happens when that hate overtakes your soul to the point that appeasing that hate within yourself takes away your reason and your conscience.

I am also heartsick to now see the indifference and hatred displayed by Israel towards its own environment and to history.Especially considering that I would hope the people of Israel would not truly wish to hurt others in such a cruel fashion. This act was uncalled for and will now take years to cleanup which means the people living in this area will have no way to make a living. Just what kind of hate does that?

Should Israel or any country be allowed to get away with such acts of environmental terrorism? I suppose the way you answer that question depends on whether you sit in the U.S. Congress which practices an exclusivity regarding responsibility, or you are a human being of conscience who finds these types of actions perpetrated by any country or entity as environmental terrorism:
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http://beirut.indymedia.org/ar/2006/07/4803.shtml
Some Impacts on the Environmental

· The marine ecosystem (fish species) is active in the summer and has been adversely affected, but the degree of damage cannot be estimated at this point in time. Thankfully, the bird migratory season had recently ended and therefore the numbers of birds effected is expected to be low.

· A small percentage of the heavy fuel oil might have evaporated due to exposure to the elements and does not have a lasting effect.

· A small percentage of the oil might be naturally decomposing because of the natural biodegradation process.

· A large percentage of the spill has emulsified and solidified along the Lebanese shore, clinging to sand, rock and stone as the following pictures will show.

· Some of the biological impacts after an oil spill can include:

o Physical and chemical alteration of natural habitats such as when oil is incorporated into sediments

o Physical smothering effect on the marine life

o Lethal or sub-lethal toxic effects on the marine life

o Changes in the marine ecosystem resulting from oil effects on key organisms e.g. increased abundance of intertidal algae following the death of limpets which normally eat the algae.
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Some reference:

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=34149
Oil Spill Hits Lebanon


http://www.middleeast.com/byblos.htm
Byblos

I suggest all sides in this get a handle on their hatred, for it is destroying our Earth... and last I checked, she did NOTHING to deserve this.

[TechBear_Seattle]

1. And Israel did this deliberately

Then again, who is going to benefit directly if Lebanese oil can not be marketed?