07/12/2017
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Dr. Nguyễn Văn Tài - Director General Vietnam Environment Administration |
1 The year 2016 witnessed many environmental incidents, circumstances and events that have never been as substantial as before. The environmental incident occurred in the coast of Central provinces and more than 50 environmental pollution cases and incidents have reminded and alerted us about a very difficult and challenging period for environmental protection. The growth model is unsustainable; many localities pay more attention to economic growth, pay less attention or even neglect environmental issues in the long-term, which accumulates many substantial environmental problems and challenges; many manufacturing types pollute the environment, many projects have backward manufacturing technologies and facilities, environmental measures do not meet the requirements; environmental management capacity of the State and enterprises are limited and resources for environmental protection are in shortage...
2016 is also a year reflecting efforts, determination and courage in environmental protection. With the participation of the whole political system and uncompromised negotiations, Formosa Hà Tĩnh gave into take responsibility for causing environmental incidents and compensating affected coastal local people; investigating and assessing the environment on a large scale in the ocean and timely giving warnings and informing sea water quality to people; on a large scale reviewing waste sources discharging to rivers and ocean and implementing large-scale inspection on environment and water resources. Particularly, the Government organised the biggest online conference in history to assess and review challenges and agree on pressing actions on environmental protection. Right after the conference, the Prime Minister has promulgated a Directive on some urgent tasks and solutions for environmental protection. After the environmental incident and event, the whole political system has made fundamental changes in viewing environmental difficulties and challenges and implementing significant efforts and determination of environmental protection. These are extremely important prerequisites and advantages for environmental protection and sustainable development of the country in the future.
2 Moving to 2017, this year will continue to face with many difficulties and challenges and implement a wide range of urgent tasks and solutions on environment in accordance with the Directive of the Prime Minister, which will require substantial efforts and determination to make new changes in environmental protection. Some groups of tasks and solutions should be paid attention to:
- Reviewing and finalizing the legal framework and legislations on environmental protection, including reviewing the Law on Environmental Protection and relevant laws, and proposing to revise the Law on Environmental Protection if necessary; reviewing and formulating a Decree on revising the Decree guiding the implementing the Law on Environmental Protection; reviewing and finalizing the standard regulations on environment; developing the regulation on responding to environmental incidents; developing the environmental protection planning for the period of 2021 - 2030; developing the screening criteria for investment projects regarding manufacturing types, manufacturing technologies and environmental sensitivity of the project location; studying and developing breakthrough mechanism in mobilising investment resources for environmental protection, particularly the resource mobilisation mechanism based on the principle of ”Polluter pays principle”, "Beneficiary pays principle” to re-invest in environmental protection...
- Reviewing environmental impact assessment reports, and environmental protection works and measures of large-scale projects and waste sources; establishing a rigid monitoring and supervision mechanism with close collaboration between central and local levels on projects and waste sources that have high potentials to cause environmental protection and incidents to a large-scale extent; Reviewing the planning, capacity, technology and requirements on environmental protection of entities working in treatment and dumping domestic wastes, industrial wastes and hazardous wastes nationwide.
- Strengthening and enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of the inspection and supervision, with close collaboration among sectors and levels, focusing on manufacturing types that cause environmental protection, large-scale projects and projects with high potential to cause environmental incidents, and environmental sensitive areas, of which focusing on entities with wastewater volumes of more than 200 m3/day.night, entities for which the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment approves the environmental impact assessment, and serious environmental polluters that are overdue for strictly addressing environmental pollution; strictly addressing violating entities, particularly disposal violation behaviours that cause environmental pollution.
- Enhancing the dissemination and propaganda of information and knowledge which create new changes in awareness on environmental difficulties and challenges in the current development period, and get consensus on viewpoint, actions, responsibilities and efforts of all levels and sectors to control pollution and to protect the environment; developing capacity on environmental monitoring and warning, focusing on key economic zones, waste concentration areas, and environmental sensitive areas.
- Consolidating the organisational structure, enhancing the capacity of the state management staff on environmental protection at central and local levels, particularly at district, wards and commune levels to meet the requirements in the new situation; enhancing the cooperation among ministries and sectors, connecting central and local agencies, collaborating between management agencies at national level with management agencies at regional level and localities, and unifying in state management on environmental protection.
- Continuing to enhance administrative reforms, particularly procedure renewal and administrative procedure, orientating towards localities and grassroot levels; strictly implementing the viewpoint in developing a Government towards services and development assistance, discipline and strictness in conducting tasks and responsibilities; combining enhanced state management on environment with creation of favourable and supporting conditions for enterprises to manufacture and trade and protect the environment.
- Enhancing information sharing, reporting and result assessment, and environmental classification for systematic connection in environmental protection; implementing dialogues among environmental agencies at central and local levels, between state management agencies with enterprise communities and people on environmental protection.
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| Developing capacity on environmental monitoring and warning | |
3 The new year is coming, environmental difficulties and challenges are arising; however, with the attention and instruction of the Party, the Government, the involvement of the whole political system, sectors and localities, the responsibilities, efforts and determinations of state management agencies on environment at central and local levels, 2017 will be a year that creates new changes, and achieves new results, success and prerequisites for the sustainable development in the future■
Dr. Nguyễn Văn Tài - Director General
Vietnam Environment Administration
