This video clip brings coverage of the AQUACLE Final Conference which took place at the Chamber of Commerce, Industry & Agriculture in Tripoli, Lebanon during 23 to 24 June 2023. The event, organized by the Lebanese University (LU) under the Patronage and Presence of the Minister of Environment, Dr. Nasser Yassin, was joined by over 200 participants and received extensive media coverage both at the national and local level in Lebanon.  

The first day started off with welcome addresses by Prof. Ahmad ElMoll, AQUACYCLE Project Team Leader, UL; Dr. Konstantinos Plakas, AQUACYCLE Project Manager, CERTH, Dr. Esmat Al-Karadsheh, ENI CBC MED, Mr. Tawfik Dabboussi, President of Chamber of Commerce in Tripoli and north Lebanon, Prof. Bassam Badran, President of the Lebanese University, and Prof. Nasser Yassine, Lebanon’s Minister of Environment. This was followed by keynote speeches on the topics of Wastewater treatment in Lebanon: status and future challenges by Najib Abi Chedid, Ministry of Environment in Lebanon, Wastewater situation in North Lebanon by Dr. Khaled Obeid, North Lebanon Water Establishment (NLWE), and on the Pilot demonstration unit of AQUACYCLE’s eco-innovative wastewater treatment system in Deddeh Koura, North Lebanon by Mr. Hussam Hawwa, DIFAF. In the next session, entitled

AQUACYCLE project legacy: the MedAPOC Charter, the presentations entitled Join AQUACYCLE’s Mediterranean Wastewater Reuse Alliance by Anna Spiteri & Eng. Dirk De Ketelaere, IRMCo, and Strengthening the Alliance through capitalization activities in the ENI CBC MED funded MEDWAYCAP project by Dr. Konstantinos Plakas, MEDWAYCAP Project Manager, CERTH.

The first day was concluded with two panel discussions: Roundtable 1 moderated by Prof. Mohamad Khalil: Testimonies on the treatment of municipal wastewater in Lebanon from the Municipalities Union of Zgharta, represented by Mrs. Jessy Franjiyeh, the Municipality of Qoubayat, represented by Eng. Youssef Antoun, and the Municipality of Mashghara, represented by Dr. Majida Moucheik; Roundtable 2 moderated by Prof. Ahmad ElMoll: Experiences from wastewater related research projects in Lebanon: NAWAMED, represented by Mrs Maya Melhem, American University of Beirut, SWATH, represented by Dr. Makram El Bachawati, University of Balamand, Mara-Mediterra represented by Dr. Fatima Yahya, UL, and PROSIM, represented by Dr. Majida Moucheik.

The second day was devoted to a presentation of AQUACYCLE achievements, with presentations on the Drawing up of action plans for the reuse of treated effluent with the aid of AQUACYCLE WebGIS decision-support tool by Dr. Ioannis Manakos, CERTH, Enabling local communities to participate in the drawing up of wastewater reuse action plans by Eng. Dirk De Ketelaere, IRMCo, Sharing outcomes of laboratory research to optimize the individual components of the APOC system by Mr. Hamadi Kallali (CERTE) and Mr. Fadhel M’Hiri (CITET), AQUACYCLE’s eco-innovative wastewater treatment system (APOC): performance and cost-benefit analysis by Mr. Pedro Simon (ESAMUR) and Dr. Isabel Oller (PSA-CIEMAT), and Viewpoints of local communities in Lebanon regarding the reuse of treated domestic effluent by Dr. Tawfik Al Naboulsi from the Lebanese University.