Lebanon is a beautiful country, and much of its beauty is natural.

Visitors to Lebanon would do a disservice to themselves if they don’t stop at the Jeita Grotto, which is made of two large limestone caves found in the mountains around 18 kilometres north of Beirut.

The upper grotto, reached by a short ride up the mountain in a cable car, is home to the biggest stalactite in the world. The long walk through the spacious cavern shows some of the mos amazing natural formations, including stalagmites, stalactites, mushrooms and columns.

The lower grotto was discovered in 1836 when an exploring Reverend fired a shot from his gun. The gigantic echo returned convinced him he had found a cavern. Little excavation afterwards tapped into the grotto, which has a small river stream running through the cavern. Words cannot describe the marvel of a boat ride through the amazingly detailed creations of nature, slowly forming and growing since the last Ice Age.

Over 1,700 m above sea level, and a good 90 minutes drive from Beirut, lies another rare gem, though much less popular than the Jeita Grotto.

Al-Shorouk Cedar Natural Reserve spans over 400 km2, covering some 5% of Lebanon’s total area. The protected area was set up to preserve cedar trees, Lebanon’s national emblem. During the winter months, these mountains are often covered by snow. However, due to climate change, the snowfall and rainfall has decreased sharply, especially last winter, which prevents the cedar seeds from germinating.

Besides climate change, the area has been under threat for thousands of years due extensive logging and herding. Much of the cedar forest cover atop the mountains of Lebanon has disappeared over the years. The area is an important stop for migrating bird, which attracts bird lovers during the migration season from all over the world. Scientists at the reserve are worried that the reduced tree cover might affect the migrating birds. The reserve also protects some of the most important water sources that flow from the area and reach many Lebanese.

The current eco-reserves are trying to reverse the trend. Although Lebanon’s approach does not focus on replanting cedars, but making conditions optimum for natural growth of the forests. Scientists are worried that replanting might introduce cedars from Algeria or Morocco, which are different species from Lebanon’s own Cedrus libani.

The forests, which are home to the oldest cedar tree in Lebanon (over 3,000 years old), are a marvel to see. As the sunlight passes between the leaves of the huge, slow-growing cedars, the fresh air and the natural sounds of birds and bees are enough to make one forget the busy streets of Beirut not too far away.

Photo by timypenburg/Flickr

A study several years ago compared people’s attitudes towards water conservation in Sweden and India. Surprisingly, Indians were much more aware of the importance of water conservation than their Scandinavian counterparts. The authors of the study attributed this to the fact that, unlike Swedes, Indians had actually gone through times of serious droughts and thirst and thus are much more aware of the value of water.

So during the World Water Week in Stockholm, Sweden, Arab countries would be well-advised to learn from the Indian experience. The Middle East is the world’s driest region, with ever dwindling water resources. The problem is aggravated by a booming population, with increasing demands for lavish lifestyles of plentiful water and food. Now, Jordanians have to contend with 135 cubic metres of water annually, well below the 1,000 cubic metres annually water poverty line. In Yemen, some regions only receive drinking water once a week.

Primitive farming techniques eat up a large bulk of the available fresh water supply. Saudi Arabia had to scale back its farming ambitions for wheat and depend on importation to save water for drinking. Qatar is looking offshore, at rich Africa, to invest its oil wealth in food production to save up on its own precious supply of water.

The looming threat of water conflicts remains highest in the Middle East. Egypt and Sudan were shocked to reality last year by plans in countries upriver of the Nile river to build dams on the river, potentially reducing the amount of water the two nations receive. Egypt, Africa’s driest country, receives less than 2 mm of rainfall on most parts of the country (apart from its northern coast), making the Nile the sole source of water for irrigation, drinking, and pretty much everything else.

A little further off, the Gaza Strip has to endure water problems as well. The World Health Organization reported that 90% of the water being supplied to Gaza’s residents is not safe for drinking due to the damage of Gaza’s single water purifier during the Gaza war in December 2008. Moreover, 50 – 80m of sewage water seeps into the sea everyday, which the Israeli human rights organisation Gisha says could wash up on Israel’s beaches.

Governments of Arab states should definitely be searching more actively for new sources of water to decrease the stress on current aquifers.

“Oil is the most plentiful resource in the Middle East, yet its discovery is the most funded. Water, on the other hand, is the least plentiful resource in the region, but its discovery is the least funded,” said Essam Hegy, a planetary scientist in the Radar Science Group at NASA.

The people themselves, however, need to change their habits to prepare for life with less water than they were used to in the past. Bad, water-wasting habits most be addressed quickly through awareness and education.

The Middle East needs to learn the lesson from neighboring India, instead of going through the same hardship, to know the importance of water conservation.