Pollution worries prompt bans

illustration photo

Ba Ria-Vung Tau is the latest province to announce that it would blacklist potentially polluting industries such as rubber latex processing, dyeing, construction steel and billet manufacturing, chemical and paper and pulp manufacturing.

The announcement comes as the province suffers from environmental pollution from existing dyeing factories, seafood processing factories and steel manufacturing plants.

The new approach will help the province “ensure sustainable economic growth, protect the environment and water sources, and enhance the efficiency of energy usage,” a resolution issued by the provincial people’s committee claimed.

Last month, Dong Nai province also issued a list of sectors in which it will no longer accept investment as authorities redirect foreign investors into high-tech, environmentally-friendly projects that create higher value.

The province will veto paper and pulp production, cassava starch processing, rubber latex pre-processing, the manufacturing of basic chemicals, tanning and leather dressing and dyeing facilities.

Bo Ngoc Thu, director of Dong Nai’s Department of Planning and Investment, said the province would like to focus on quality of investment, especially foreign investment, rather than quantity alone.

The decision is unsurprising given that both provinces in the past suffered as a consequence of the nation’s worst ever pollution case at Vedan Enterprise Corp Ltd.

But other provinces are also afraid of polluting investments. The northern province of Thai Binh in January also issued a blanket ban on industries for it does not want to attract private investments.

“Provincial leaders now acknowledge that the local economy and residents could face risks from these projects. Environmental pollution can hurt a province’s development,” said Nguyen Mai, chairman of Vietnam Association for Foreign Invested Enterprises.

He cited the pollution of the Thi Vai River by Vedan as a lesson for other provinces.

Several years ago, Danang rejected two large-scale industrial projects to protect its profitable tourism industry. The projects included a $1.2 billion steel manufacturing plant and a pulp-manufacturing factory worth about $1.2 billion.

The municipal authority announced that it would reject any project that endangered the environment, despite the city being keen on industrial development.