Waste treatment and environmental pollution in Ho Chi Minh City: Budget cannot afford!

Recently, the Economic and Budget Board of Ho Chi Minh City People's Council has continuously carried out many monitoring of environmental management in the area. Many hot environmental problems have revealed: waste disposal, pollution of sewage and industrial waste, medical waste .

Mr. Nguyen Minh Hoang (Photo: TTO)

Talking to the PV , Mr. NGUYEN MINH HOANG - Head of the Economic and Budget Committee of the City People's Council - emphasized:

- In addition to the amount of waste thousands of tons per day, mud and mud silos with large volumes of HCMC currently have no way out. For a long time, Ho Chi Minh City dumped this kind of waste in Tan Phu district, causing heavy pollution, while there has not been a new dump so far. Most industrial wastewater and medical waste are not treated yet. City funding for pollution remediation, environmental hygiene is extremely expensive.

* Sir, Ho Chi Minh City's waste disposal problem is currently very urgent, while the infrastructure is not met, it is still passive . Economic committee and budget of the City People's Council have recommendations or solutions. Which promotion for this problem?

- This issue Ho Chi Minh City People's Council has mentioned many times since the 3rd session (December 2004), not waiting until now to bring it out. A big city like Ho Chi Minh City, the problem of managing and treating garbage is extremely important, must be one step ahead. But until now, implemented projects have not met the actual demand for waste treatment. The progress of projects is slow and the technology of waste treatment is mostly buried. That is not to mention a number of places that are in trouble, such as Go Cat landfill, there are problems in the treatment of leachate.

The current bottlenecks have two things: there is no policy for investors to accept investment in the field of waste treatment with advanced technology, only invest in landfill while the city's land fund is increasingly limited. narrow, can not solve the problem. Therefore, the city is still struggling to find an open policy in this area so that investors find it useful to invest. Another thing is the balance of the budget for this area, the city cannot afford it. Every year the city has tens of thousands of billion dongs but must arrange for many other urgent projects.

* But sir, some investors have complained that the promotion of investment procedures in garbage disposal in Ho Chi Minh City is very difficult, they are frustrated . The City Council is interested in pushing promoting promotion of investment in this field?

- We have heard that complaint, but in fact, there are no specific addresses. In my opinion, until now the city is ready to receive investment projects in the field of waste treatment. If the environmental industry does not accept investment projects, point to the City People's Committee. The press has found any investment project, please introduce, we will bridge the promotion of implementing projects. Currently, calling for investment in this area as well as calling for investment to expand water supply network is very difficult.

QUOC THANH made

In the next 5 years, the TP environment will be better

* The amount of annual investment for environmental activities is huge. But why is pollution still not decreasing? Is there any way to improve the situation?

- Mr. Nguyen Trung Viet (Head of the Department of Solid Waste Management, Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Ho Chi Minh City): Each year, Urban Environment Company is granted 350 billion VND to transport rubbish. 70 billion VND.Although debris is a thing that sells money, the state still has to pay for transportation.After the contract was delivered, immediately transporting debris fell to 30 billion dong.

If the salary of each person is 5 million VND / month, how many people will pay that 30 billion VND?I'm sure that if you increase the number of supervisors in all areas of the environment, the city is both green and clean and beautiful.

From the new city of 2.5 million people until now it has been very different, before the city has only 14 districts, now has increased to 24 districts;and the industrial zone has not increased to 15 industrial parks yet.But the payroll doesn't increase, environmental workers are almost the same.

* Can the people hope that the TP environment will improve in the next five years, sir?

- I believe that in the next five years, the TP environment will be much better than today.If nothing changes, in 2008, Nhieu Loc - Thi Nghe canal will be solved.And by 2010 the city also plans to build a wastewater treatment plant.As for solid waste, this year or later next year, we will complete legal documents and planning.

WORKSHOP done