Over 4mn in Lebanon may lose access to water

If the public water supply system collapses, the UN agency estimates that water costs could skyrocket by 200 per cent a month when securing water from alternative or private water suppliers

More than four million people, including one million refugees, are at immediate risk of losing access to safe water in Lebanon, the UNICEF said in a new report.

With the rapidly escalating economic crisis, shortages of funding, fuel and supplies such as chlorine and spare parts, the UNICEF estimates that most water pumping will gradually cease across the country in the next four to six weeks.

If the public water supply system collapses, the UN agency estimates that water costs could skyrocket by 200 per cent a month when securing water from alternative or private water suppliers.

According to a UNICEF-supported assessment based on data collected by the country’s four main public water utility companies in May and June 2021, more than 71 per cent of people fall within ‘highly critical’ and ‘critical’ levels of vulnerability.

According to the study, blackouts are placing water systems under pressure, interrupting the treatment, pumping, and distribution of water. On a national level, water that is unaccounted for due to system losses is about 40 per cent.

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