Ajloun — Environmental campaigns to collect illegally dumped waste have become increasingly frequent in Ajloun Governorate, with several official bodies, including the environment and tourism directorates, the Joint Services Council and municipalities, continuing their efforts with support from civil society organizations and volunteers. However, the campaigns face an ongoing challenge as random waste dumping persists.
اضافة اعلان
The campaigns run throughout the year and target various locations across the governorate, particularly tourist destinations such as Ishtafina and Al-Rawabi, major and tourist roads, and areas deep within forests. Dozens of campaigns were carried out last month and this month to reduce the negative effects of illegally dumped waste.
Officials and activists stress that protecting the environment and disposing of illegally dumped waste are shared responsibilities essential to safeguarding nature and building a sustainable future, particularly amid growing global environmental challenges, including climate change, water scarcity, pollution, waste accumulation and shrinking green spaces.
Environmental specialist and engineer Mohammad Freihat said protecting the environment and turning environmental awareness into responsible daily behavior had become essential. He stressed that this required the participation of official institutions, civil society, schools, universities and individuals.
Awareness efforts take various forms, including media campaigns, school and university activities, seminars, workshops, cleanup and tree-planting campaigns, and volunteer initiatives targeting residential neighborhoods and public facilities. Social media platforms also play an important role in delivering environmental messages to different groups, particularly young people, and encouraging their participation in community initiatives.
Freihat emphasized that these efforts become more effective when awareness goes beyond slogans to provide clear information and practical guidance, linking knowledge with action so that environmental protection becomes part of everyday behavior rather than a temporary response to a particular occasion.
Promoting more responsible behavior
Representatives of the Jabal Aouf and Wadi Kufranjah special education associations, along with the Kufranjah Women Pioneers Association, highlighted the importance of awareness efforts in strengthening environmental culture. The groups work with the Ministry of Environment through a weekly program to protect the environment in Ishtafina, Khallat Al-Beir and Sous Rason.
They said environmental awareness is a key tool in addressing environmental challenges, helping citizens understand the causes and effects of environmental problems and encouraging them to adopt more responsible behaviors.
Journalist Mahmoud Al-Aboud highlighted the media’s responsibility to draw attention to environmental issues, provide reliable information, showcase successful initiatives and encourage public discussion of possible solutions. He noted that sustained media coverage keeps environmental issues in the public spotlight, supports community accountability and encourages individuals and institutions to adopt more sustainable practices.
He added that achieving long-term results requires continuity, coordination among relevant bodies and the provision of facilities that enable environmentally responsible behavior. Waste-sorting awareness, for example, must be supported by appropriate collection and treatment systems, while tree-planting initiatives require selecting species suited to the local environment and ensuring their continued watering and care.
Ajloun Education Director Khaldoun Jweid said young people play a central role in spreading environmental awareness because of their ability to innovate, communicate and launch volunteer initiatives. Schools and universities, he added, provide a suitable environment for instilling environmental values in younger generations through practical activities, competitions and projects that encourage recycling, responsible consumption and public cleanliness.
He noted that 50 school clubs work to protect the environment and participate in campaigns organized by the Ministry of Environment in cooperation with local administrative authorities. The education directorate also works with the Environment Directorate to deliver an awareness program for school students throughout the year, including the “My School, My Belonging” initiative and other environmental projects carried out in cooperation with local communities and teaching and administrative staff.
Meanwhile, the governorate’s Environmental Protection Directorate has continued, for the eighth consecutive week, to carry out dozens of cleanup campaigns in forest areas and tourist sites under the executive program of the national strategy to maintain cleanliness and curb illegal dumping. The campaigns involved 150 participants and collected dozens of tonnes of waste to help keep public spaces and natural sites clean.
As part of the national plan to curb illegal dumping, the Tourism Directorate has also conducted more than 18 comprehensive cleanup campaigns around the Ajloun Visitor Center, the cable car and its surrounding areas, and the Al-Jubb tourist trail. Around 100 people participated, representing the Ajloun Joint Services Council, the Youth Imprints Initiative, community police, environmental police, the Tourism Police Department, and community and youth groups.
The campaigns removed waste and improved environmental conditions at the targeted sites, enhancing their appeal to visitors and supporting their long-term sustainability.
A shared sense of responsibility
Ajloun Environment Director Engineer Nizar Haddad highlighted the risks facing the environment and the importance of strengthening a culture of protecting natural resources and reinforcing shared responsibility for the Earth, describing it as a right of present generations and a trust to be passed on to future generations.
He stressed that environmental protection is not the responsibility of a single body, nor should it be limited to seasonal campaigns or national, Arab and international occasions. Instead, it begins with individual behavior at home, on the street and in the workplace.
Reducing water and energy consumption, limiting the use of single-use plastics, sorting waste, keeping public spaces clean, and planting and caring for trees are all simple practices that can have a tangible impact when adopted widely, he said.
Haddad also pointed to the efforts of the Ministry of Environment and its directorates under the national strategy to curb illegal dumping. These ongoing efforts involve various institutions and are accompanied by lectures, workshops and seminars for different groups to raise awareness of environmental protection, reduce random waste dumping and conserve resources.
He emphasized the importance of continued coordination with the Ministry of Social Development, charitable associations and local organizations. The Environmental Protection Directorate in Ajloun is working to broaden cooperation and encourage meaningful community participation, strengthening public cleanliness and voluntary environmental responsibility toward the country’s resources. These efforts support the objectives of the executive program of the cleanliness and anti-dumping strategy in Ajloun, which receives significant tourist traffic.
Ajloun Tourism Director Firas Khattatbeh also stressed the importance of shared responsibility and cooperation to protect the governorate’s environment, particularly given water-related and environmental challenges that require more responsible resource use, reduced waste, greater water conservation awareness and protection of vegetation.
He noted that environmental responsibility extends beyond individuals to include institutions, companies, municipalities, educational bodies and the media. These groups can contribute by adopting sustainable practices, improving waste management, expanding green spaces and supporting initiatives that protect natural resources.
Khattatbeh said the Ministry of Tourism had so far conducted 18 cleanup and environmental protection campaigns across the governorate, in addition to daily campaigns carried out by the directorate around Ajloun Castle, extending to the Visitor Center and cable car area. He said the efforts reflect the ministry’s commitment to ensuring that a safe environment remains an important component of sustainable development.
Around 100 volunteers from the Youth Imprints Initiative and official and volunteer groups in Ajloun took part in the campaigns. Visitors and hikers in the area expressed their appreciation for the initiatives and the efforts being made to keep tourist sites clean, he added.
Source: Al-Ghad.
