Launch of the Sustainable Energy Strategy of the Lebanese Armed Forces
Launch of the Sustainable Energy Strategy of the Lebanese Armed Forces
Source : UNDP Egypt
23-May-2017
The Ministry of Defence and the Lebanese Armed Forces Command launched today the study entitled “Sustainable Energy Strategy of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF)” in collaboration with the European Union-funded UNDP CEDRO Project. The launch event was held under the patronage of Prime Minister Saad Hariri and in the presence of the Minister of Defence, Yacoub Sarraf, the Minister of Energy and Water Cesar Abi Khalil, the Minister of Environment Tarek Al Khatib represented by Dr Joseph el Asmar, the Commander in Chief of the Lebanese Armed Forces, General Joseph Aoun, the Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Lebanon, Ambassador Christina Lassen, and the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Sigrid Kaag.
The study has surveyed many different categories of buildings for the LAF across Lebanon and collected baseline information on energy use for 2015. From this baseline, the LAF aligned its targets to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to match those of Lebanon as a country as set in the International Climate Change Agreement Paris Agreement. The targets are set to achieve a 30% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, conditional on support from the international community. This reduction is to be achieved through the implementation of renewable energy and energy efficiency measures across various buildings and facilities of the LAF. In specific, a 20% renewable energy and 10% power demand reduction through energy efficiency will be achieved before or by 2030.
This study and these commitments are the first of their kind for any Arab army in the Middle East, highlighting the national security threat that climate change poses.
"This innovative energy sustainability strategy, devised under the EU-funded CEDRO IV project with support from UNDP greatly complements the cooperation between the EU and Lebanon in the field of sustainable development," Ambassador Lassen said.
UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Sigrid Kaag indicated that “This study is the first of its kind in the entire Middle East and beyond, where an army takes the initiative to lead by example and commit to perform its duties in ways that take into account the environment."