The Government has just approved a plan to build six solid-waste treatment facilities for the Mekong Delta in an ambitious target to collect and treat 90% of wastes in the region by 2015 and all wastes discharged there by 2020.

Processing solid-waste to make compost

Under a decision signed on Monday by Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai, the new facilities will be built in Can Tho City, An Giang, Kien Giang, and Ca Mau provinces

One facility for treating harmful solid waste will be built on a total area of 20 hectares in Ca Mau Province plus a solid waste facility north of the southernmost province. The other four solid waste facilities are Chau Thanh Solid Waste Facility in An Giang, Hon Dat Solid Waste Zone in Kien Giang, and O Mon and Thoi Lai solid waste facilities in Can Tho City.

The six facilities will help collecting and treating some 90% of household solid waste and industrial waste for the whole region by 2015 and will raise the treating capacity up to 100% of the discharged waste in the region by 2020.

The four provinces are estimated to discharge some 4,600 tons of solid wastes each day by 2015 and 7,550 tons a day by 2020, according to the plan approved by the Government.

The plan also set conditions on treatment technologies that are suitable with each province including a priority for recycling solid wastes as well as minimizing the burying technology so as to reduce environment pollution and maintain the land use in the region.

The plan also calls for participation of all economic sectors to develop these solid waste treatment facilities.

Under the plan, the four provinces in the next five years will have to make plans for closing down all operating waste facilities in the region that are not meeting technical requirements for environment protection.

After that, between 2015 and 2020, the provinces will accelerate construction of the facilities and promote the practice of waste classification among the public.

The plan envisages using the State Budget, official development assistance loans and private funds for the construction of the six solid waste treatment systems.