Awareness of environmental protection significantly improved after three years of implementing Law on Environmental Protection 2020
After three years of implementing the Law on Environmental Protection 2020, the state's management of the environment in the province has yielded numerous significant results. Notably, the awareness of environmental protection among individuals and businesses has markedly increased, and the quality of surface water and air has seen substantial improvement.
Enhancing governmental oversight
Immediately following the enactment of the Law on Environmental Protection (LEP) 2020 on January 1, 2022, the Provincial People's Committee issued a comprehensive set of legal documents pertaining to environmental protection, thereby enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of state management in this domain. The province has also developed and promulgated administrative procedures in accordance with regulations; concurrently, it has implemented "one-stop" mechanisms and provided online public services for administrative processes related to the environment. Furthermore, the Provincial People's Committee remains attentive to and prioritizes the resolution of challenges faced by organizations and individuals within the environmental sector.
In collaboration with the province, localities have enhanced environmental protection measures in accordance with state management decentralization. Regarding this initiative, Ms. Quach Kim Oanh, Head of the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Di An City, stated that each year, the department advises the City People's Committee to formulate a plan for environmental protection and climate change adaptation. The 2025 plan emphasizes the City People's Committee's commitment to maintaining and striving to achieve ten objectives in the environmental sector, including: ensuring that 100% of facilities responsible for severe environmental pollution are thoroughly addressed, with no new cases emerging; guaranteeing that 100% of domestic and medical solid waste is collected and treated in compliance with regulations; and achieving a connection rate of 38% or more for households in areas and along routes with wastewater collection pipes linked to domestic wastewater systems.
Mrs. Quach Kim Oanh stated that to attain the aforementioned objectives, the City People's Committee has instructed departments, organizations, and the People's Committees of wards to enhance awareness and training regarding legal knowledge on environmental protection and the skills necessary for classifying domestic solid waste among the populace. Concurrently, efforts will be intensified to prevent, control, and address environmental pollution issues from the outset.
In Thuan An City, the initiative to promote and mobilize community participation in preserving urban aesthetics and safeguarding the environment has been actively advanced by various sectors and organizations through numerous practical activities, including the sustained effectiveness of the "Garbage-free Neighborhood" model and Civilized Saturdays. Furthermore, the relevant authorities in Thuan An City have intensified inspections and evaluations to promptly identify and address actions that contribute to environmental pollution, thereby preventing widespread complaints and denunciations. In 2024, the authorities advised the City People's Committee to issue a decision to inspect land, environmental, and water resource management for 64 organizations and individuals, as well as to examine environmental concerns based on feedback for 44 cases. Consequently, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment (now the Department of Agriculture and Environment) of Thuan An City recommended that the City People's Committee and the Provincial People's Committee issue 53 administrative sanction decisions in the fields of environment and natural resources, resulting in a total fine of nearly 4.8 billion VND. Additionally, the relevant authorities actively conducted follow-up inspections to ensure compliance with the administrative sanctions; as a result, 21 decisions have been settled with cash payments totaling 1.9 billion VND, and 4 cases have ceased operations. Currently, the functional unit continues to monitor and encourage compliance with the administrative sanction decisions.
Continue monitoring
In conjunction with enhancing state management of environmental issues, the provincial authorities have implemented numerous measures to prevent and control sources of environmental pollution. Since 2009, the province has established an automatic wastewater monitoring system for significant waste sources and industries with a potential risk of pollution. To date, the province has installed 104 automatic wastewater monitoring stations and 33 automatic emission monitoring stations; monitoring data is transmitted to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment (now the Department of Agriculture and Environment), with continuous monitoring conducted 24 hours a day. Recent monitoring results indicate that wastewater from these sources typically complies with standards upon discharge into the environment.
Furthermore, the provincial People's Committee has established and operationalized four urban wastewater treatment facilities, namely in Thu Dau Mot City, Di An City, Thuan An City, and Tan Uyen City. Concurrently, it is undertaking the construction of the Ben Cat City Wastewater Plant and expanding the collection network, while enhancing the capacity of the Di An City and Thuan An City Wastewater Treatment Plants. For residential areas lacking urban wastewater collection systems, compliant water treatment systems have been implemented. To date, the province has achieved an urban wastewater collection and treatment rate of approximately 53.8%. Additionally, Binh Duong province has developed a surface water quality monitoring network at 34 locations along rivers and canals that feed into the Saigon, Dong Nai, Be River, and Thi Tinh rivers. Simultaneously, provincial authorities have installed four automatic monitoring systems to oversee fluctuations in environmental components within the major rivers of the province.
In addition to safeguarding the quality of surface water sources, the provincial authorities have enhanced air quality management by regulating industrial emission sources through an automatic emission monitoring system. Furthermore, the province emphasizes attracting investment in industrial parks by selecting projects that utilize advanced, environmentally sustainable technology; ensuring that all facilities discharging emissions are equipped with treatment systems in compliance with regulations; and transitioning waste treatment technology from landfill disposal to recycling.
The simultaneous execution of the aforementioned prevention and control measures has significantly enhanced the quality of surface water and the air environment within the province. Notably, the water quality of the Dong Nai, Saigon, and Thi Tinh rivers has achieved ratings ranging from good to very good (suitable for domestic use) and average (suitable for irrigation). In 2021 and 2022, Binh Duong province recorded 22 days with air quality classified as average to poor or worse; however, in 2023, this number decreased to 5 days, and in 2024, it further declined to only 3 days of air quality at the average to poor level.
From 2022 to 2024, the specialized inspection agency conducted assessments of the environmental protection efforts of 269 units, resulting in the identification of violations at 181 units, amounting to over 50 billion VND. Additionally, 255 units were sanctioned for administrative violations in the field of environmental protection, as referred by specialized units, with a total fine exceeding 12.7 billion VND. During this same period, the Provincial Police processed 2,264 cases of environmental law violations; of these, 227 cases were carried over from 2021, while 2,037 new cases were inspected and uncovered. |
Reported by Nguyen Hau – Thanh Tuyen – Translated by Vi Bao
