The Ibrahim River, or ‘Nahr Ibrahim’ starts off in the mountains of Afqa in northern Lebanon with strong, dynamic waterfalls. It pools into small lakes and basins forming little paradises where people gather to swim and enjoy the untouched waters. From there, it is split into two separate streams by an electric dam. The waters continue into the villages of Chouwen and Janné, relatively clean, and still seem unharmed to the many campers that enjoy the cool of the riverbanks on hot summer days. They bathe in the cold freshly melted ice, and go back to the city with a rested mind and clear conscience, oblivious to the amounts of trash they are leaving behind to be carried downstream and caught in the rocks and trees growing in the river.
From here it is used modestly to irrigate the small agricultural plots that dot the mountain landscape, feeding the villages along the river. It goes through its first industrial processing through a second dam into an electric power plant in Yahshoush, significantly reducing the power of its flow. It can hardly be called natural at this point; as it approaches its final destination, concrete channels siphon the water off into numerous industrial stone and marble factories. The chalky, dusty residues and factory waste are dumped back into the now weakening river. Large banana plantations spread out on its banks, feeding off of its waters. By this point it has neared the highway and the urban population, the two separate streams are reunited. This is the only part of the river the city dwellers get to see. Restaurants line the sides of the river, and offer meals along the ‘natural’ and ‘pure’ waters. It is finally set free, allowed to flow passively and defeated under the highway into the Mediterranean Sea.
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