Environment

Authorities have announced warnings after the serious air pollution in Hanoi and other northern Vietnamese localities entered its seventh day on Saturday. Air pollution in Hanoi between December 7 and 13 was worse than that of the previous week, the Vietnam Environment Administration (VEA) under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment said on Saturday. The air quality index (AQI) in the capital from December 10 to 13 was measured at between 201 and 300, considered dangerous to health. From December 7 to 12, the amount of fine dust, or PM 2.5, also exceeded the normal limit by up to two to three times. The AQI was worst from 10:00 am to 8:00 am during this period. The situation improved in the afternoon, but the change was not considerable. PM 2.5 reached its highest level at midnight and in the early morning. To minimize the negative effect of air pollution, the VEA advised local residents to limit their outdoor activities during the mentioned time of the day, and put on … [Read more...] about Environment ministry issues warnings regarding severe pollution in Hanoi

Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha (R) and his Czech counterpart Richard Brabec (Photo: VNA) Prague (VNA) – Vietnam and the Czech Republic will enhance environmental collaboration under an action plan for cooperation during 2020-2025 signed between Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha and his Czech counterpart Richard Brabec in Prague on December 13. At the event, the two ministers spoke highly of the unceasingly consolidated traditional friendship between the two nations, describing it as a foundation for the environment ministries and sectors of both sides to boost cooperation in this field. Ha highlighted that the signing of the action plan, implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the two ministries in 2012 and the Vietnam-Czech environmental business forum will serve as a base for competent authorities of both sides to concretise cooperative activities in environment, climate change and technology … [Read more...] about Vietnam, Czech Republic step up environmental cooperation

Troops and local people join hands in cleaning up an inter-village road After the launching ceremony, troops and youth union members of Depot K856 of the Department of Weaponry and Equipment teamed up with socio-political organizations of Huong Hiep commune to clean up inter-village roads, dig up a drain in Ra Lu village and disseminate information about  environmental protection and building a green, clean and beautiful environment to locals. On this occasion, the general department presented six pairs of goats to needy families with contributions to the nation, and handed over ten bikes, 30 backpacks, and 20 sets of clothes to local students with good academic records. It also started repairing a gratitude house for Senior Lieutenant Nguyen Thi Thom, a non-commissioned officer of Depot K856. Translated by Chung Anh … [Read more...] about GDT acts for clean, green and beautiful environment

Vietnam is looking to increase an environmental protection duty imposed on fuel products from the current VND3,000 (13 U.S. cents) to VND4,000 per liter, according to a proposal of the Ministry of Finance. If being approved, the increase will be applied from July 1. Explaining the hike, the ministry said it would add VND15.7 trillion ($690 million) to the state budget, offsetting a shortfall caused by a fuel import tax cut. Under a free trade agreement between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and South Korea, which came into effect in early 2016, the import tariff on gasoline imported from South Korea to Vietnam has fallen from 20 percent to 10 percent.  As a result, most Vietnamese traders who had improted gasoline from ASEAN countries switched to South Korea because the import tariff on gasoline from the former still stands at 20 percent.  Meanwhile, retail pump prices in Vietnam are lower than in many neighboring countries, including ASEAN nations, … [Read more...] about Vietnam plans to increase environment tax on petroleum products

Transportation activities make up 99 percent of the total CO emissions of HCM City. Le Thanh Hai, Director of the Institute of Environment and Resources, said the average annual concentration of PM2.5 fine dust in Vietnamese cities is about 28 mg per cubic meter, or 3 times higher than the recommended average level of 10 mg per cubic meter. While the air pollution is becoming more serious in large cities, especially HCM City, there is no radical solution to settle the problem to the root. There are approximately 10 million vehicles, which include 7.6 million motorbikes, 700,000 cars and more than 2 million vehicles brought by people from other provinces to the city. A high number of personal vehicles is believed not to strictly observe periodic maintenance, which leads to an increase in the volume of emissions to the environment. Mai Chi Poor air quality in northern Vietnam Independent air quality tracker AirVisual reported a higher index in some areas in Hanoi … [Read more...] about Central HCM City exceeds PM2.5 emissions limits