Farmers in Lebanon make do with limited resources as climate change threatens industry
For the vast majority of farmers in the Lebanese village of Qab Elias, every season is a complete gamble.
The only source of water they have to maintain their crops comes from the freshwater mountain spring that runs downstream into the village.
It is a limited natural resource that effectively controls the quality and quantity of their harvest – and their livelihoods.
Such is the case for farmer and Qab Elias native Walid Al Ahmid, in his 50s. He has no choice but to irrigate his crops with the limited supply of water that the municipality, which regulates the spring runoff from the nearby mountain, provides once every nine days.
If it snows and rains enough, it will replenish groundwater reservoirs and contribute to the spring – meaning there may be enough water for a successful agricultural season.
“But we didn’t get the average rainfall this year. And last year there was even less water,” Mr Al Ahmid told The National.
Normally, by the time July comes around and groundwater becomes scarce due to high demand and a dry climate, water is allocated every 12 days instead of nine. And with below average snow and rainfall this year, Mr Al Ahmid dreads an even tougher summer than usual. “Maybe water every 16 days,” he said. “I don’t sleep at night. There are too many problems keeping me up.”
His water scarcity issues, affected by climate change and high population demand, are compounded by a financial crisis that has taken Lebanon to the edge of economic collapse.
With the Lebanese currency now worth a fraction of its previous value, Mr Al Ahmid must pay the upfront costs in dollars, while his profit comes in the unstable, fluctuating Lebanese pound. After paying $8,000 to rent his 40 dunams – or four hectares – of land, he has little remaining to purchase the supplies needed for maintaining his farm. These initial costs – fertiliser, pesticide, seeds and diesel – are typically lent by suppliers, who Mr Al Ahmid must pay back.
But if a drought affects the bounty of his harvest, he will slide into debt.
“In July, the water comes less often. For example, if I had planted zucchini it would deteriorate without water,” he said.
Less water means a poorer yield, which means less profit.
“Last year, I swear to God not a single lira went into my pocket. We planted and worked and harvested and planted and in the end we broke even,” he said.
“All just to pay the debt and get people off my back.”
The costs of farming have mounted in large part due to farmers having to compensate for Lebanon’s continuing economic collapse.
For example, state electricity is a thing of the past: with its coffers depleted, the state can no longer afford to import fuel for electricity, causing most power plants to shut down.
The lack of electricity exacerbates Lebanon’s water shortage, forcing farmers to depend on expensive generators to pump water for irrigation.
Mr Al Ahmid fills his plastic-lined dugout pond once every nine days, when the municipality provides him with water. Then he uses a pump, powered by a diesel generator – expensive to maintain – to irrigate.
Mr Al Ahmid comes from generations of farmers. Although agriculture is what he knows and loves, he said he no longer finds the endeavour sustainable, due largely to water shortages.
Lebanon is rich in water resources in comparison to the rest of the Middle East. And yet paradoxically, according to the World Resources Institute, it is the third-most water-stressed nation in the world.
Although Qab Elias – the Bekaa Valley’s third-largest village – is one of the most water-threatened areas in the valley, farmers all over Lebanon face mounting threats to their livelihoods.
Even before its economic crisis and despite its relative water abundance, Lebanon suffered for decades from water shortages caused by bad water management, climate change, pollution and population growth, all of which have contributed to scarcity.
Residents have had to adapt to water cuts in homes, especially in the hot summer months, frequently affecting their capacity to cook or wash.
Hospitals and schools throughout the country also have limited water supply.
To compensate for the scarcity, many households rely on water delivery services as an additional expense. Such is the case with agriculture, as well,
with farmers dependent on expensive deliveries by lorry when public water or ground resources are too low.
However, Mr Al Ahmid says he cannot afford the cost of water being delivered to his farm whenever the mountain spring is depleted.
Nadim Farajallah, head of the Climate Change and Environment Programme at the Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs in Beirut, explains part of the problem.
“We have a relative abundance of rain, which is not stored properly during the rainy season for use in summer,” he said.
“We lose most of what we get because we don’t have any substantial storage facility in Lebanon.”
According to Mr Farajallah, about 60 per cent of Lebanon’s water is used in agriculture – the third-most productive sector in the country. Yet the economically and environmentally stressed nation is hardly capable of supporting the sector. Farmers in Lebanon are completely unsubsidised, left to fend for themselves or reliant on NGO support, so they incur the cost of the state’s failures.
Global warming has led to less rain and snow, and therefore reduced replenishment of groundwater resources, said Mr Farajallah.
The lack of substantial water storage in Lebanon prevents the protection of what groundwater there is.
The onus is on farmers to conserve as much as possible by changing their irrigation methods, he said, which is nearly impossible given the
Global warming has meant less rain and snow, leading to reduced replenishment of groundwater resources
high cost of installing drip irrigation systems and lack of government support. Farmers such as Mr Al Ahmid, who can afford little more than to rent land and buy supplies, cannot install costly albeit water-saving irrigation methods.
This year, Mr Al Ahmid wanted to grow wheat, which requires less water and is in high demand due to the global wheat shortage caused by Russia’s war on Ukraine.
“At least we can sell wheat in dollars,” thus ensuring profit, he told The National.
Many farmers in Qab Elias, forced to adapt to the water scarcity, have either switched to planting wheat or plan to do so.
But Mr Al Ahmid couldn’t this year.
“The seeds are expensive,” he said. “After I paid rent and bought supplies, I didn’t have any money left to buy the seeds. By the time I had enough money, the wheat-planting window had passed.”