LookAtVietnam – Monosodium glutamate producers Vedan had been caught discharging untreated waste water into the Rao Tro River, Ha Tinh Province’s Department of Natural Resources and Environment said last Saturday.

The factory in the province had planned a US$2.75 million waste water system which had been running under a pilot scheme since February, but only $300,000 had been invested in the plan so far. (Photo: VNN)

The factory has a capacity to process 800 tonnes of cassava starch per day.

“The river used to be clean, but now there’s a 3cm layer of scum on it and it smells terrible. The outdoor storage areas for the cassava also stink,” a resident in Ky Lac Commune, in the lower section of the river, said.

The river is the main water source for the Vung Ang Econonic Zone in Ky Anh District, according to Tran Minh Ky, deputy chairman of Ha Tinh Province’s People’s Committee.

“So if the river is polluted, it will have serious knock-on effects,” he said.

Vedan denies dumping untreated waste water into the river, saying the pollution is due to a design fault.

“Due to some shortcomings in the design of the guttering, the waste water mixes with the rain water and accidentally flows into the river,” said Truong Vinh Chu, director of Vedan’s Cassava Starch Factory in Ha Tinh Province.

The factory is one of the three branches of the company, whose head office is in Dong Nai Province.

The factory would improve the waste treatment system before opening officially in November, Chu said. Vedan must implement the agreements it made on waste water and solid waste treatment with the provincial administration, Ky said.

“If it fails to do that, the province will immediately suspend the factory’s operations.”

The provincial People’s Committee was waiting for the official report from the investigative team from the Environment Department and the Environment Police before releasing its final decision, he said.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News

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