PM orders to strictly punish polluting Vedan

VGP - The Vedan Việt Nam Joint-stock Company Ltd’s violations of environment protection laws must be punished resolutely, thoroughly and strictly through proper steps to put an end to the illegal discharge of untreated sewage, overcome consequences, maintain production activities, and protect legitimate interests of the company’s employees.

A pipeline to directly pump untreated sewage from Vedan company

PM Nguyễn Tấn Dũng gave those directions in a document issued on November 6.

The Government chief also asked the authority of the southern province of Đồng Nai to cooperate with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) and the Ministry of Public Security to strictly implement two MONRE-made decisions, namely Decision 1999/QĐ-BTNMT on October 6, 2008 on suspending Vedan’s license to discharge its sewage into water sources and Decision 131/QĐ-XPHC on the same day to impose administrative penalty against Vedan’s law infringement.

PM Dũng required Đồng Nai’s People’s Committee to closely supervise Vedan’s observation of the two decisions.

Accordingly, Vedan is allowed to discharge properly-treated sewage and operate in line with its designed capacity.

In case the producer refuses to follow the verdict and continues its law-breaking activities, the Chairperson of the Đồng Nai People’s Committee is authorized to impose heavier penalties as stipulated by the Law of Environment.

PM Dũng ordered MONRE and  the Đồng Nai People's Committee to seriously consider their lack of close coordination and unanimity in managing Vedan’s operations as well as in dealing with the company’s violations. They were forced to make report to the PM in November 2008.

- September 8: After many months of secret investigation, the Environmental Police Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security and the MONRE investigation team caught Vedan's illegal discharge of untreated sewage into the Thị Vải River. - September 19: An interdisciplinary inspection team made a report on Vedan's environment violations  and sent the case to investigation agencies. - September 25: After a week of examining the scene, the interdisciplinary inspection team issued official conclusions on Vedan's environmental wrongdoings. - October 6-7: MONRE decided punishments against Vedan's environmental wrongdoings, suggesting the Đồng Nai's People's Committee to suspend Vedan's business operation. - October 13: The Government Office issued Document 1706/TTg-KGVX announcing the PM's ideas on punishments against Vedan. - So far, Vedan has paid a fine of VND 267 million and dismantled 1,059 meters of underground steel pipelines. Vedan pledged to pay VND 127 billion of environment protection fee in 2008 and 2009.

By Hải Minh