Publication: Cost of Environmental Degradation for 2023 in Lebanon
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2025-02-05
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2025-02-05
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Lebanon, the land of the cedars. Lebanon is endowed with a rich and diversified natural ecosystem, ranging across coastal areas, plains, valleys, and forests; extensive water resources through springs and rivers; breathtaking landscapes and pleasant climate. This ecosystem could have constituted Lebanon’s asset for economic and social development. However, with the current state of degradation of natural resources; urban sprawl taking over; extensive littering; mountains scarred with quarries; and polluted air, water, and soil, the nostalgic vision of a beautiful Lebanon is heavily compromised. The Cost of Environmental Degradation (COED) provides an annual cost of environmental degradation and measures in monetary terms the impacts caused by the environmental damage occurring in the reference year, 2023 in this case. The total cost is also estimated in terms of percentage of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) for 2023. As such, the COED aims to inform equitable policy choices to support the integrity of the environment and promote conservation within the context of sustainable development.
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“World Bank. 2025. Cost of Environmental Degradation for 2023 in Lebanon. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/42760 License: CC BY-NC 3.0 IGO.”
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