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June 24,
2004
Government committee discusses lifting restrictions on diesel
Only buses with over 24 seats can use alternative fuel
A Beirut MP said it was too early to say whether a Kuwaiti offer to sell Lebanon fuel products at cost would be accepted
By Leila Hatoum
BEIRUT: With rumors flying that diesel-powered vehicles will once again be allowed on the streets of Lebanon , organizations and politicians of all stripes are lining up to defend or amend the law that is at the center of the controversy - Law 341.
Green Line, a local environmental organization, said on Tuesday that they were not averse to allowing more vehicles to run on diesel, but that law 341 should be amended to provide for strict environmental standards governing fuel usage.
As it currently stands, the only vehicles permitted to operate on diesel in Lebanon are buses with more than 24 seats.
"The issue is not whether to permit or forbid the use of diesel, it is the question of the quality of diesel to be used," said Firas Abi Ghanem, a campaigner for Green Line.
But," he added, "the matter of permitting diesel fuel remains as uncertain as the issue of the government looking into the recent Kuwaiti proposal to sell Lebanon diesel and fuel products at cost."
Abi Ghanem added that he believed the whole diesel saga was less rooted in environmental concerns than in politics. He noted that gasoline taxes collected by the government exceeded those collected from diesel, which "makes it the main reason for banning diesel-powered transport vehicles."
In contrast, Habib Maalouf, president of the Lebanese Environment and Development Committee, a local non-government organization, said he was skeptical whether a more environmentally-friendly diesel fuel could be mandated in practice.
"Whether it is a friendly diesel or not, the poisonous emissions from diesel are higher than those of gasoline's emissions," he said.
Adding to the activity around the issue Tuesday, Prime Minister Rafik Hariri led a meeting attended by members of Parliament's Public Works, Transport, Energy and Water Committee, which is chaired by Beirut MP Mohammed Qabbani.
Qabbani said they discussed Law 341, including "... three main issues regarding the environment, the social dilemma of taxi drivers, and traffic jams."
Qabbani denied rumors that diesel-powered vehicles would soon be allowed to operate again. "I never said they would be permitted or not, all this talk is just speculation," he added.
As for the Kuwaiti proposal, Qabbani said he was personally following the matter, but that "the proposal is still sleeping in the government's drawers ... besides it is still early to say whether it is going to be accepted or not."
Meanwhile, President of the Taxi Drivers' Syndicate, Abdul Emir Najdi said on Tuesday that his members' demands would be discussed with Hariri on Thursday through the General Labor Confederation (GLC).
"We will wait for the meeting's results before taking action," Najdi said, in an apparent reference to reports the GLC would lead strikes next week.
He added that he welcomed permission for cabs to use diesel, but said he would "not accept bad quality diesel because we don't want to pollute our country."
Sleiman Tabikh, a representative for minivans in the Bekaa, said that regardless of the GLC's meeting with Hariri, "we will make our own move to demand our rights."