War and Waste: From Global Patterns to Lebanon’s Reality

Armed conflicts generate what is internationally defined as “disaster and conflict waste”, a complex mix of debris, household waste, hazardous materials, and emergency-related byproducts that emerge both during and after crises as result from poor waste management.

Across conflict-affected regions, research consistently shows that solid waste management (SWM) systems are among the most severely impacted public services. Infrastructure damage, institutional breakdown, and restricted mobility disrupt the entire waste chain, from collection to disposal.

Beyond municipal waste, conflicts generate massive volumes of construction and demolition debris, often containing hazardous materials such as asbestos, heavy metals, and unexploded ordnance, posing long-term environmental and health risks.

Across contexts, three patterns consistently emerge:

• System disruption: damaged infrastructure and limited access halt waste collection and treatment
• Waste surge and transformation: increased debris, packaging waste, and mixed waste streams
• Compounded risks: pollution, disease spread, and long-term environmental degradation

These impacts highlight that waste is not a secondary issue in conflict, it is a multiplier of vulnerability.

In Lebanon, the war of 2026 has not created a waste crisis from scratch, it has intensified an already fragile system.

Even before the escalation, Lebanon’s SWM sector faced structural challenges: limited infrastructure, weak governance, and reliance on landfills and informal practices. Conflict has amplified these weaknesses.

Recent developments show that:

• Mass displacement has placed immense pressure on waste systems in host communities and shelters 
• Overcrowded areas experience rapid waste accumulation, often without segregation or adequate collection
• Municipal capacity is reduced, as resources are redirected toward emergency response
• Infrastructure damage, including roads and bridges, disrupts access to collection routes and disposal sites
• Construction and demolition waste (CDW) from damaged buildings introduces hazardous materials into the environment, complicating safe disposal and increasing health risks 

In many areas, waste is increasingly managed through informal or emergency solutions, including open dumping and burning, further exacerbating environmental and public health risks.

The consequences are not only environmental:

• Contaminated water sources and soil
• Increased respiratory and vector-borne diseases
• Deteriorating living conditions, especially in displacement settings
• Long-term damage to ecosystems and livelihoods

In fragile contexts like Lebanon, where health systems and public services are already under strain, these risks are significantly amplified.

In Lebanon today, addressing waste is not about ideal systems, it is about maintaining minimum functionality, supporting municipalities, and equipping communities with practical, realistic solutions.

Because recovery does not begin when the war ends.
It begins with how we manage the invisible impacts, like waste, during it.