HCM City to Only Grant Licenses to Medical Units with Wastewater Treatment

The Health Department in Vietnam’s southern economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City will ask medical units for proper wastewater treatment systems if they want to receive operating licenses or extend operation deadlines. The move is aimed to cope with the large amount of untreated wastewater from health centers, especially private ones that is greatly threatening the environment and public health.
The rising number of the municipal private clinics is making remarkable contribution to improving the healthcare service for local residents, but their substandard wastewater is also a pressing issue of the local authorities, Department Director Pham Viet Thanh said. Almost total 195 private general clinics only treat wastewater perfunctorily via septic tanks before discharging into the environment, Thanh elaborated. He added that the department earlier requested all medical units to install their treatment systems meeting the national standards by end-2011 otherwise they will face the risk of being shut down. The municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment said that local hospitals are estimated to discharge around 23,000cu.m of medical wastewater, most of which are untreated, posing a great threat to the community’s health. (Tin Tuc – News Oct 21 p6)