Libya Essay
by Brian Reynoso
Libya
In the modern age, environmental problems are prevalent throughout all countries on the globe. Numerous countries everywhere have already took notice of this issue, while at the same time realizing that the only way to counter this impending catastrophe is through the productive manipulation of information technology. Information technology is a pivotal tool in the struggle for an eco-friendly globe, and the way that a country utilizes it varies depending on the specific problem. Libya is a country located on the Northeastern most edge of Africa, next to Egypt, and surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea on one side and the Sahara Desert on the other side. Although it is one of the few more advanced countries on the African continent, it still suffers with its handful of severe environmental problems. At the forefront of a majority of American’s visions of Libya lay political issues. Only recently, “an uprising […] turned into an armed rebellion” which led to a “bombing campaign, [that] has [since] been met with criticism by initial supporters” (Anup). Eventually the uprising led to the death of Qadhafi, Libya’s leader for more than a decade. But unknown to the world, and yet a major problem in Libya, are three specific environmental issues. Pollution levels are rapidly increasing as small industries in Libya’s urban areas lack any sanitary standards and have no superior power by which to abide. Libya is also plagued with the issue of waste management and hardly has the capability of providing a place for the safe disposal of objects that would otherwise hurt nature if thrown into streams (as is usually done). Finally, one other major environmental issue in Libya involves soil degradation, seeing as at least ninety percent of the land is considered desert or semi-desert and the rate of desertification is on the rise. Unfortunately, for Libya these problems are not going to stop with the reign of a new leader or through political treaties signed with the United Nations. Instead Libya recognizes the potential that information technology has when combating issues such as pollution, and therefore strives to give all of its citizens equal access to the internet and other forms of communication.
Considering most of the country is desert, it is mainly the major port cities in Libya, such as Tripoli and Banghazi that lead the charge for the industrial sector. Coincidentally, these major urban sectors in Libya also happen to be situated along the coast, where most of the population resides. This is not necessarily a good thing for the country of Libya, as “the problem of industrial pollution lay with the large number of small industries […] within urban cities […] lacking special facilities for industrial wastewater collection and treatment and for safe disposal of industrial solid waste” (European Commission). Before, the revolutions rocked the Middle East, Qadhafi had a monopoly on Libyan industry. The aftershock of his downfall only made this epicenter of power evident. Not only did the industries in the North choose to dispose of their waste by dumping it into the sea, but because they were allied with Qadhafi’s regime for so long, there were no legal repercussions. Now, Libya is stuck with removing the waste from these cities and disposing of it; but the question is where? How will Libya approach this issue if it is already bogged down in a cloud of pollution and it has nowhere to retreat? All of Northern Libya is in a quagmire of sorts, seeing as it cannot push downward because of the Sahara, and yet it cannot sustain itself living off of a coast that will soon be full of waste.
The main reason that pollution is such a huge environmental danger to Libya is because of the other topic involving waste management. Libya lacks proper enforcement in the area of recycling and it has approached the degree to which “absence of plans and control operations [contribute] to widespread dumpsites, covering extensive areas on the seashore” (European Commission). There are no guidelines for safely getting rid of industrial waste in Libya, or at least there hasn’t been any for the past decade. Libya shares international waters (the Mediterranean Sea) and yet it fails to find any fault in dumping wastes into the sea. The dumpsites are a common sight along the Libyan coast and due to a combined lack of funds and education, the people have come to accept them as normal. While Qadhafi reigned, access to how polluted the dumpsites were, was literally invisible to the citizens of Libya. Now, that the people know how potentially dangerous these sites are to the local environment, they will allow the state to fund for improvement. Firstly, Libya needs to provide clear and concise rules banning industrial waste from pouring into the sea. As the issue of waste management rests now, the area will eventually congest and pollution levels will swell, leaving the industrial sector to collapse. If the waste continues to pile up along the coast, the people will have no access to clean water, which is especially needed in this semi-desert.
The third major environmental issue is desertification, or soil degradation. Located in North Africa, it is bound to share the land within its borders with that of the Sahara Desert. This is primarily a problem because it forces the majority of the population to reside in the northern region of the country, forcing congestion. The leading causes of desertification are severe climate change and human activity. What really matters here, however, are the results, which show that desertification “may cause a […] decrease of the area of arable land, […] and an increase in the number of animals beyond the carrying capacity” (Saad). While the industries residing in the less densely-populated cities of the interior are known to practice safe waste management, they are still blotches on a dry, dry land. The Sahara, historically, has never been a place of residency for anybody. Especially now, however, that there are already populations dependent on the small areas where agriculture is allowed to grow, the problem of desertification looms omniscient. The resources are fading fast, leaving agriculture to lessen and species to disappear. Normally, the interior would prevent desertification by getting the Northern cities to bail them out; but now that the North is bogged down with pollution, the interior finds it extremely difficult to counteract this issue.
Libya sprouted up recently as a force to be reckoned with in the Middle East because of its rapid advancement in technology. Had it not been for information technology, the resistance that ousted Qadhafi would have never succeeded, or possibly even surfaced. Now, “in the wake of the revolution, the liberalization of the media regulatory landscape, combined with continued infrastructure developments, could result in expanded Internet use and reduced controls on information and communication” (Jones). This is crucial information, at least for the country’s leading officials who see educating the masses as the best way of combating pollution. The solution is simple: an educated populace would not allow the waste to pour into the ecosystem. Before Qadhafi fell, the internet was a heavily regulated enterprise, only accessible to the wealthy or those favored by the government at the time. Now, that the people have access to a ton of information and they can interact with people from all corners of their country, they can easily grasp how pivotal getting rid of waste is to their habitat. Nobody wants to learn that their place of residency is a polluted time bomb waiting to implode, but Libyans wouldn’t mind learning about this. Simply put, they were starved for information for so long, that now that they have the internet to guide their decisions, they will be quick to pressure for the removal of waste. As freedom of information increases, so does democracy: nobody’s voice is ignored. As democracy rises in Libya, everyone shares a feeling of reliance on one another; so things can change. Some people could counter by saying that “Information technology is not a substitute for constructive relationships” (Hall). And yet this is partly true; the internet will always lessen the effect of something by making it seem distant. The reason why this is not the case in Libya is because of the recent revolution. The people have witnessed the worst of atrocities and they, of all people, know that anything is possible. The goal, instead, is not to build constructive relationships, but to form a union that shares a common vision of reducing pollution. Nobody has to like one another to contribute to the solution, one simply has to agree with the goal and work with others to accomplish it. In conclusion, increased equal access to the internet will allow the people of Libya to expose the unsanitary practice of waste management and eventually abolish pollution as a problem.
Here is a list of my references:
1. Jones, Chris, Sharon Kennedy, Siobahn Kerr, Joseph Mitchell, and Daniel Safayeni. "Furthering Democracy in Libya with Information Technology: Opportunities for the International Donor Community." CIGIonline.org. The Centre for International Governance Innovation, 4 Nov. 2012. Web. 18 Feb. 2013. .
2. "5.6 Libya." Europa.eu. European Commission, Mar. 2006. Web. 18 Feb. 2013. .
3. Anup, Shah. "Crisis in Libya." Globalissues.org. Global Issues, 4 Apr. 2011. Web. 18 Feb. 2013. .
4. Saad, Ali Mansour A., Noresah M. Shariff, and Sanjay Gairola. "Nature and Causes of Land Degradation and Desertification in Libya: Need for Sustainable Land Management." Academicjournals.org/AJB. Academic Journals, 17 Oct. 2011. Web. 18 Feb. 2013. .
5. Hall, Robert E. "From Libya To U.S.: Technology Alters Fabric Of Relationships." IBTimes.com. International Business Times, 25 Sept. 2012. Web. 18 Feb. 2013. .