Who gains from saving nature
Ledger 1 : 33 — For each dollar financing nature-based solutions in 2023, about $33 financed activities harmful to nature. (UNEP)
Cases / Finance, funds and markets · Libya · 2012–2024

Derna dams collapse in 2023 after maintenance funds were not spent on upkeep

Short record: the main facts, with sources. A full case file has not been prepared.

Nature's voice · report
No measurement of the harm done to me here is on record.
Did nature suffer? Not measured.
People
  • 25,000 people were displaced or listed for relocation.
    At least 25,000 displaced
What the record lacks: 3 none on record · 1 insufficient · 1 not measured See the gaps

The dams above the Libyan city of Derna collapsed in September 2023, with death toll estimates from about 4,000 to more than 11,000. Maintenance money allocated in 2012 and 2013 was not spent on upkeep, and the sources reviewed give no environmental figures for the flood.

What?
Dams above Derna collapsed in September 2023 after maintenance money allocated in 2012 and 2013 was not spent on upkeep (The New Arab). The New Arab
Where?
Derna, eastern Libya The New Arab
When?
Maintenance funds allocated 2012 and 2013; dams collapsed in September 2023 The New Arab
Who?
Gained
  • Reconstruction fund run by Belgasım Hafter — Took on reconstruction; exempt from ordinary financial audit under an emergency law The New Arab
  • Arab Contractors — Major reconstruction contracts The New Arab
Lost
  • Public funds — More than 2 million dollars allocated for dam maintenance in 2012 and 2013 The New Arab
Harmed
  • Derna residents — Death toll estimates from about 4,000 to more than 11,000; at least 25,000 displaced The New Arab
Why?
Not stated in the sources reviewed.
How?
Dam maintenance not carried out; reconstruction through an audit-exempt fund and Egyptian contractors The New Arab
6 of 6 questions answered from the record

What happened

The record, in order.

The dams above Derna collapsed in September 2023; death toll estimates range from about 4,000 to more than 11,000, and at least 25,000 people were displaced (The New Arab).

More than 2 million dollars for dam maintenance was allocated in 2012 and 2013, but the sources say no maintenance was carried out (The New Arab).

Twelve officials were sentenced to 9 to 27 years in prison, and reconstruction was taken on by a fund run by Belgasım Hafter, which an emergency law exempted from ordinary financial audit (The New Arab).

    In court and with insurers

    Every proceeding and every insurer decision on record.

    Lawsuits and rulings

    1. Claimant won
      Prosecution of Derna dam officials
      Not stated in sources · Criminal · State prosecution → Twelve officials (not named)

      Twelve officials were sentenced to between 9 and 27 years in prison (The New Arab). The New Arab

    Insurers

    No insurer decision on record.

    What we don't know

    Undisclosed, unproven, untried: recorded as data.

    Nature

    • Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.

    Record

    • None on record The court finding of negligence and waste of public money is cited without a URL in the sources reviewed.
    • None on record The 1.8 billion dollar reconstruction need is cited without a separate URL in the sources reviewed.
    • None on record No official death toll is recorded in the sources reviewed.
    • Insufficient Reported but not verified: the death toll and displacement figures rely on a single article.

    Did the harm stop?

    Not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Who paid?

    Not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Sources

    Voices on record: — Company or project— Government and regulators— Courts✓ Press and investigations— Communities and civil society— Researchers

    Press and investigations

    Terms used on this page

    Law and courts

    Negligence and gross negligence
    Negligence is a failure to take reasonable care. Gross negligence is a serious, reckless failure; under US oil-spill law a finding of gross negligence raises the maximum penalty.
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