Diving into task of cleaning up after crisis

TABARJA, Lebanon - The divers plunge below the surface, scuba tanks on their backs and nets in hand. But what they're looking for under the ocean surface is not treasure, it's trash.

The group is conducting a cleanup below the waves, one of many initiatives emerging from Lebanon's civil society and private sector in response to the government's failure to address a long-running garbage crisis.

The dive, off the town of Tabarja, near Beirut, proved fruitful: The divers emerged with nets full of plastic and glass bottles, rusted drink and food cans and even tires, as a few swimmers nearby looked on bemused.