The strong development of both economy and society has currently brought new prosperity to people’s life. However, its downside is the large-scale environmental pollution and degradation in rural areas. It poses an urgent need for rural environmental protection, especially in craft villages, to ensure sustainable development goals. This is not only the task of all levels, disciplines and authorities but also the responsibility of residents in Ung Hoa district.
In order to effectively implement the objectives, the District People’s Committee disseminates the contents of the plan and assigns specific tasks to relevant units. Every year, the District Office of Natural Resources and Environment coordinates with the culture and information sector and the socio-political organizations within the district to organize meetings on environmental protection in communes and towns to help people with a better awareness of environmental protection and responsibility for environmental sanitation and industrial and domestic waste treatment. Launching ceremonies and propaganda activities with banners, slogans, etc are held on the anniversaries regarding the environment such as the World Water Day; the World Environment Day; the campaign to make the World cleaner, and so on in 29 communes and towns, contributing to raising people’s awareness of environmental protection. Over the years, many practical activities of environmental protection have also been implemented and maintained by socio-political organizations in hamlets and residential groups such as the Women’s Union and the Youth Union with the self-governing road model; activities of cleaning up village laneways on the occasion of major national and local holidays; the “5-No & 5-Clean family” model released by the Women’s Union, which now includes on more criterion of clean rice field in addition to clean house, clean kitchen, and clean lane criteria. The Youth Union of the district has also effectively maintained the “Green – clean – beautiful Sunday” movement and conducted various educational activities for members of the importance of environmental protection in diverse forms with rich contents, such as holding events with the theme of environmental protection; keeping the workplace clean; frequently organizing voluntary activities for the environment, removing advertisments, and planting trees, etc.
Women joined the activities of environmental protection.
In 2017, the district implemented activities in response to the World Environment Day 5/6 and the Vietnam Sea and Islands Week (1/6 to 8/6) with specific themes such as “For Our Future” or “Living in Harmony with Nature”; communicated and disseminated policies, views and guidelines of the Party and the State on environmental protection; encouraged people to participate in the photo contest titled “Harms of Burning Straw and Using Honeycomb Coal Stoves” organized by Hanoi Department of Natural Resources and Environment; hung banners and posters in the district with the theme “Fields without Burn Straw” to propagate and encourage farmers to limit the burning of straw after the harvest seasons.
Youth’s environmental protection activities.
Organized propaganda on maintaining rural environmental sanitation; mobilized people to collect and treat garbage and wastewater according to regulations, to use improved stoves instead of honeycomb coal ones, and not to burn straw but apply solutions to recycle straws in an environmentally friendly manner.
In handling of administrative procedures with respect to the environment in the period 2010-2016, the District People’s Committee certified 56 environmental protection commitments; 21 environmental protection plans and 30 simple environmental protection schemes; granted 09 permits for underground water exploitation and 09 permits for discharge of wastewater into water sources; and certified the underground water exploitation registration for 01 case.
The district People’s Committee instructed the Office of Natural Resources and Environment to coordinate with relevant agencies to inspect the compliance with the environmental protection law of local production, business and service establishments and made administrative sanctioning decisions against 13 production, business and service establishments with a total fine of 251 million dongs. In 2017, the district People’s Committee inspected 10 production and business establishments, 8 of which were found to have violated the environmental protection law and are pending for prescribed sanctions from the Office of Natural Resources and Environment.
The rural clean water socialization program has been further promoted. Clean water has been available to 100% of rural households in the district, 31.5% of which have access to clean water from the central water supply. 100% of manual brick kilns in the locality have been removed and converted into 14 brick manufacturing facilities using the environmentally friendly tunnel kiln technology.
Youth Union of Ung Hoa district opened the flow of canals in the fields
Garbage is collected, transported and treated every day in 29 communes and towns with an average volume of 60-70 tons per day (reaching 95% of domestic waste generated in the district). The District People’s Committee invested in the construction of 02 proper dumps and 53 waste gathering sites in order to increase the efficiency of waste collection and treatment.
The district is now speeding up the development and implementation of environmental protection plans for craft villages, step by step addressing pollution and improving the environment in craft villages which is seriously polluted. With regard to environmental pollution and waste dumping and burning at waste collection and recycling establishments in Xa Cau village, Quang Phu Cau commune, the district inspected 116 out of 157 waste collection and recycling households in Xa Cau hamlet, Quang Phu Cau commune (including 54 waste collection and sorting establishments and 62 scrap processing establishments) under the Decision No. 3127/QD-UBND made by the District People’s Committee. A contract for collecting, transporting, storing and treating general industrial waste in Xa Cau village, Quang Phu Cau commune was signed with Urenco 10 under the authorization of the district People’s Committee with the treatment capacity of 84 tons. Up to now, dumping and burning waste indiscriminately has initially be reduced.
Under the synchronous and decisive direction of all levels of government and with the engagement of all people, the environmental protection in the district will definitely gain positive and effective results.
Quoc Hai