New Collection Program Pays Lebanon Citizens for Recyclables

A new type of drive thru in Beirut, Lebanon isn’t taking customer’s orders, rather, it’s accepting their trash in exchange for cash.

Lebanon is facing landfill issues as the trash mounds continue to overflow. As well as waste is being burnt illegally at informal dump sites and trash floats in the Mediterranean Sea. With Lebanon facing crises, recycling has taken its own hit as the country with an economic collapse.

"The government used to be in charge of this sector and now it is bankrupt," said Pierre Baaklini, 32, founder of Lebanon Waste Management.

Last year, Baaklini started the first “Drive Throw,” a recycling station where people drive up to the locations, fills out some papers, and place bags and boxes of recyclables on the counter. The Drive Throw accepts everything from cardboard to plastic, glass, metal, e-waste, batteries, and even used cooking oil.

This past February, Baaklini started a second Drive Throw in Burj Hammoud, a suburb in Beirut nearby to a landfill.

At the Drive Throw, a sign lists prices, indicating that a kilogram, about 2.2 pounds, of cardboard is worth 2,000 Lebanese pounds, equating to roughly two cents. Aluminum cans are worth 50,000 Lebanese pounds per kilogram.

After the materials are donated, the recyclables are sorted, and plastic is shredded and cleaned.

To date, the facilities have taken in a total of 450 tonnes of materials to recycle, according to Baaklini. He mentioned that the materials are then sold to local and international clients.

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