VietNamNet Bridge – Environmental police discover hundreds of violations every year including dumping of untreated effluents, poaching and illegal trade in wildlife, but are unable to follow through fully because of legal loopholes, a senior government official has said.

Many factories dumped huge quantities of untreated waste, polluting large areas of land and water, especially the lower sections of the Thi Vai, Sai Gon, Cau, Nhue, and Day rivers. This had seriously affected agricultural and aquacultural production, as well as the health of surrounding residents.

Quang said many domestic and foreign firms had taken undue advantage of policies by central and local governments to attract investment capital. They exploited weaknesses in the environment protection law while constructing industrial parks, export processing zones, factories and craft villages.

The investors deliberately avoided their responsibility to build waste-water treatment systems so that they could keep costs down and increase profits.

Investigations showed that about 1,500 trade villages were guilty of releasing untreated wastewater directly into the ditches, ponds and rice fields.

Many factories dumped huge quantities of untreated waste, polluting large areas of land and water, especially the lower sections of the Thi Vai, Sai Gon, Cau, Nhue, and Day rivers.

This had seriously affected agricultural and aquacultural production, as well as the health of surrounding residents.

The import of metal scrap, and old machines with backward and obsolete technology are major factors in causing environmental pollution, the Public Security Ministry said.

The environmental police force had found many violations including the import of 21 old machines containing the polyclobyphenyl (PCB) hazardous waste at the Cuu Long Vinashin Steel Joint Stock Company; 2,500 tonnes of metal scrap by the Anh Trang Company; 1,000 tonnes of metal scrap by the Thanh Loi Steel Joint Stock Company; and 74 waste paper containers by the Kim Chinh Company.

But the police have faced difficulties in enforcing penalties because of shortcomings in the 1999 Penal Code provisions that deal with environmental crimes.

Concepts used in the law, such as “causing serious consequences”, “particularly serious offenses” and “serious pollution” were too general; and the law does not provide guidance on the criminal responsibility of the violators. All such offences are only subject to administrative fines.

Luong Minh Thao, deputy head of the environmental police department, said the 1999 Penal Code does not define the rights and power of the environmental police force.

The Ministry of Public Security has proposed that the Prime Minister amend and supplement the Penal Code to deal with the shortcomings. Under this, the environmental police force has responsibility for investigating and participating in the assessment process for environmental projects.

(Source: Viet Nam News)