Mekong factory admits to pollution

Việt Nam Lee & Man Paper Manufacturing Limited in the Mekong Delta province of Hậu Giang has admitted to polluting the environment, affecting nearby households, during a dry run of its waste treatment plant.— VNA/VNS Photo Đông Bình

Chung Waifu, the company’s general director, has sent a report to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment’s inspection team about the pollution, including during a trial run of its waste treatment plant on March 7, the province’s Department of Natural Resources and Environment said on Sunday.

In it, the company admits to causing noise, dust and a bad odour affecting nearby households.

The pollution was caused by coal dust from a coal warehouse.

The company plans to install anti-dust nets around the warehouse and plant trees behind it to prevent the dust from blowing around the neighbourhood. The work is expected to be completed by April 17.

Sound proofing will be done to reduce the noise from its coal-fuelled power plant before April 13.

The company will also set up a deodorising machine to neutralise the smell emanating from a fry-mud storage and mud tank at its wastewater treatment plant.

The Mái Dầm Town People’s Committee said around 60 households were affected by the stench.

Lê Thị Hồng, 50, a resident of the town in Châu Thành District, said she is afraid the malodour and coal dust would threaten the health of her family, especially her five year-old niece.

Nguyễn Văn Thái, 63, who lives near the Mái Dầm River in the town’s Phú Xuân Commune, said the stench and noise have reduced, but he is still worried about the water pollution. Many local residents get itches when they use the river water for washing, he said.

Đào Trọng Ngữ, director of the province’s Centre for Environmental Monitoring, said the centre’s facilities are linked to an automatic environmental monitoring station at the company for monitoring data.

The department is developing an automatic environmental monitoring system in the province.

Last month the ministry asked the company to furnish details of its trial operation of the treatment plant after the media reported about complaints by local residents.

It also sought the province’s collaboration in monitoring the plant’s trial operation.