Vedan seriously violates environment rules: official
Posted by Bao Viet Nam on September 18, 2008
Hanoi (VNA) – A government official has affirmed that responsible agencies have enough grounds to charge the Taiwanese-owned Vedan company with seriously polluting the environment and doing harm to the local people.
“Legal proceedings may be launched against the company”, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Pham Khoi Nguyen said at a press briefing on Vedan company’s violations of the Law on Environmental Protection on Sept. 17.
The Vedan company had been found to have been evading environmental protection fee, failing to treat waste water at the required standard, intentionally discharging wastes directly to the environment, and violating regulations relating to the management of hazardous wastes.
The Vedan company’s plant in southern Dong Nai province was estimated to discharge around 1,493 cu. m of fluid waste water resulted from fermentation containing hazardous compositions and 5,159 cu. m of untreated waste water a day into nearby Thi Vai river.
Asbestos, a hazardous waste was also found at the Vedan company’s waste storage although it had not been registered to the environmental watchdog by the company. Additionally, Vedan company’s hazardous waste storage was not met the safety standard, threatening to pollute the environment during the rainy season.
Additionally, Vedan company did not conduct assessment of its environmental impacts and violated the State management regulation when increasing the processing capacity without the authorities’ permission, authorised agencies said.
Minister Nguyen stated that the Vedan company case will be handled seriously to deter other businesses from following suit or using obsolete technologies to cause harms to both the environment and people’s health.
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) will ask the Chairman of southern Dong Nai province’s People’s Committee to suspend the operation of Vedan company’s plant for inspection of its entire waste water treatment system, Nguyen said.
The Vedan plant needs to be closed to repair its waste water treatment system. If it cannot fix the problem, it will be removed or finally closed down, Minister Nguyen stressed.
Vice Director of the Environmental Police Department Luong Minh Thao said a conclusion on Vedan company’s violations of the Law on Environmental Protection will be made public on September 19. “This will serve as a foundation for related agencies to take legal proceedings against the company,” he said.
The Environmental Police Department will continue to inspect businesses located at the basin of the Thi Vai river and make further inspections over Vedan company’s processing establishments in other localities as well as other businesses, plants and industrial zones around the country in October.
The Taiwanese-owned Vedan company began its operation in Vietnam in 1991, specialising in producing MSG, acid powder, sugary water, NaOH, and bio-products. Its plant covers 120 ha in southern Dong Nai province.-
