According to a report in Vietnam News, the government of Ho Chi Minh City has taken multiple steps to improve Environmental conditions this year under their Environment plan for the 2018-2020 period. The plan has 10 goals and has seen the city take action on wastewater treatment and monitoring, waste management and community accountability measures. Under the plan, wastewater treatment and monitoring systems will be required in all industrial parks and complexes, as well as export processing zones and high-tech parks. To enforce regulations, these will be inspected and monitored by state agencies.
Moreover, hospitals and industrial facilities must meet certain Environmental criteria, and in urban areas 80% of household wastewater discharged will be treated to meet Environmental guidelines. Between 2016-2017, city authorities have evaluated waste discharge at some 2.786 industrial facilities, 1,163 enterprises, and 526 health-care facilities. At the moment, HCM city currently discharges 1.75 million cubic meters of waste water a day – a figure that amounts up to 80% of the water supply in the city. The city’s two water treatment plants, together with the wastewater treated at plants and industrial parks treat about 21% of city waste water per day. The city government plans to expand the three wastewater facilities to reach a capacity of 1 million liters of wastewater a day by 2020 and cover all of the city’s wastewater.
City measures to tackle waste include the collection, transport, processing and recycling of all household solid waste, hazardous waste and healthcare solid waste. 40% or more of the city’s household waste will be recycled and 60% buried in line with Environmental standards. Pollutants expulsed into water sources will see a 90% reduction. On another note road traffic emissions will be reduced by 70% Tackling plastic waste in particular, the city authorities aim to decrease the volume of plastic bags used in business centers and supermarkets by 65%.
In terms of community measures, the People’s committee in HCM city wants to ensure 80% of the population assume their Environmental responsibility, that all new rural communes achieve prescribed hygiene and Environmental standards and that government officials and managers are adequately trained in climate change and harm reduction strategies for the Environment. In tandem with this, the use of renewable Energy is set to increase to 1.74% of the city’s total Energy consumption.
(Source: Vietnam News; Electronic Green Journal)
