The Lebanese government has approved Decree No. 1962, which expands the industrial zone in the town of Kfour (Nabatieh), despite active legal challenges and clear violations of environmental and land-use laws. With this step, the government is validating years of controversial master plan modifications, introduced since 2016, that have steadily turned farmland, natural and residential areas into industrial zones. These changes, pushed by the municipality and by political and investment interests, have already transformed about 830 dunums of agricultural and residential land, raising the industrial footprint of the town to 26.8%. This expansion goes directly against Lebanon’s National Land Use Master Plan, which recognizes the area as an essential agricultural and natural zone.

The latest expansion sits right next to people’s homes and the public school, in a town already struggling with unmanaged waste dumps, tire-burning workshops, unlicensed factories, polluted air, and constant toxic odors. Instead of addressing these long-standing problems, the government has chosen to legitimize and enlarge them, making itself an active partner in deepening the environmental and health risks facing residents.

The decree also dismisses an ongoing legal case filed in February 2025 by Public Works Studio, Legal Agenda, and local residents, who challenged earlier planning decisions for violating environmental laws and bypassing required environmental assessments. By issuing the decree before the court could rule, the government has sidestepped due process and imposed a damaging reality on the town.

What is happening in Kfour is not an isolated incident; it reflects a wider trend of using land-use planning to benefit powerful interests at the expense of communities. Residents are now demanding that Decree 1962 be withdrawn and that the government play an active role in protecting their basic rights to live in a healthy and safe environment. 

Read the full Policy Watch in Arabic.