Ghaleb Halimi, director of university sports at the American University of Beirut, sent out an email on May 23rd announcing to faculty and students that while AUB beach is open, the microbiological results showed that the bacteria in the water “exceeded acceptable limits for bathing water quality.”
Halimi goes on to recommend that AUB beach goers do not swim. And if the waters near AUB beach are unsuitable for swimming, we can only imagine the levels of bacteria in waters near the Costa Brava landfill, where many beach resorts are located.
This, of course, is directly related to the ongoing trash crisis that has plagued the country and the governments insistence on using landfills near water sources.
Above all, it is deeply unfair and unsettling that while AUB students have the privilege of being privy to such information, the overwhelming majority of the Lebanese people are kept in the dark, with no government statement regarding the safety of the water.
You can read the email below:
Post update: a reader got in touch with us and informed us that AUB staff sent another email this afternoon claiming that the seawater had gone back to a normal chemical balance. The email is pasted below:
Dear All,
As part of its routine beach water quality testing, AUB analyzed a sample of the beach water on Monday 22 May 2017. Results showed that the level of bacteria dropped to acceptable bathing water quality limits and consequently the water is safe for swimming.
AUB will keep on testing the beach water quality on weekly basis to provide beach users with updated information.
Best Regards Farouk Merhebi Director
American University of Beirut Environmental Health, Safety and Risk Management
