Vietnam Needs to Change Environment Protection Law: Experts

The 2005 Environment Protection Law and guiding documents have become inappropriate in current conditions, overlapping the other laws, Dr. Nguyen Van Phuong from Hanoi Law University said.
Phuong said at a seminar on proposing the law amendment held by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Hanoi Sept 7. Some rules of the law are no longer relevant, causing difficulties during the law implementation. The overlap between laws led to an inefficiency in environment protection and economic development. Specifically, the law lacks environmental technological standards to work as a legal base to distinguish scrap allowed for import from scrap which is forbidden. This has been hindering scrap importers and management agencies when enforcing the law. Pham Chi Cuong, chairman of the Vietnam Steel Association (VSA), said many VSA members are no longer allowed to import old ships for scrap, adding that some villages in Haiphong City and central provinces do not have locals dissemble ships any longer. Many have left for Cambodia to work. In addition, when put in a furnace at a temperature of 5,000 degrees Celsius, impurities of steel hulls are eliminated, Cuong added. Many articles of the law and guiding documents are vague and contain numerous loopholes which could be abused, he attributed. Around 2,800 traditional craft villages nationwide are causing the environment pollution very seriously. Thus, most villages might receive fines and even be effaced if management agencies impose the current environment law, Vu Quoc Tuan, chairman of the Vietnam Craft Village Association said. However, technology should be applied in any craft villages for pollution reduction as the cost of tackling pollution is huge, Vo Van Khanh, deputy director of the Hanoi Department of Natural Resources and Environment, adding that Hanoi had spent nearly VND300 billion on building a wastewater treatment facility for three craft villages. Up to 20,000 polluters have resulted in fines but none are prosecuted due to a lack of sanctions, said Luong Minh Thao, deputy head of the Environment Police Bureau. (thesaigontimes.vn Sept 8, Thoi Bao Kinh Te – Economic Times Sept 8 p4, Vietamplus.vn Sept 7)