HCM City residents sort household waste for recycling. — VNA/VNS Photo Hồng Giang

HCM CITY — In a move to transform waste management for a better quality of life, HCM City has been working to improve garbage collection and treatment technology.

Lê Ngọc Hà, a resident of Thủ Đức City said that her area suffers from an overwhelming stench every time the rudimentary garbage trucks stopped by to pick up the trash.

She added: “Fortunately, since the beginning of this year, we have had a larger, more modern truck to collect the garbage, ending the long days of having to deal with the stench.”

Pollution from household trash has also been a pressing issue for local residents, especially those who live near collection points.

Phạm Hà Khánh, a Bình Thạnh District resident said he hopes the city will soon develop proper garbage collection points to ensure hygiene and the people’s quality of life.

Thủ Đức City is one of the few localities that have been successful in upgrading its garbage trucks.

Nguyễn Kim Hoa, deputy director of the local waste management service Liên Hiệp Environment Cooperative, said that all the garbage collecting vehicles in the unit have been upgraded from 500kg to 1.5 tonnes in load capacity.

Hoa told Người lao động (Labourer) newspaper: “Ever since the vehicles were upgraded, trash has been collected in a more professional manner, which prevents them from leaking to the streets and therefore protects the surrounding environment.

According to Thủ Đức City’s Division of Natural Resources and Environment, the locality has upgraded 98 per cent of its garbage trucks.

The city is also working to renovate and ensure technical standards at its trash collection points.

The plan is that from 2025 onward, all of these locations will be developed with fully enclosed waste collection and vehicle parking areas, utilising trash compactor technology, and a treatment system for wastewater, emissions and odour.

According to a mid-term report on solid waste treatment in HCM City to 2025 with a vision to 2050, conducted by the municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment, the city has 2,618 trash collection teams as part of cooperatives and businesses, out of the total 2,653.

These groups have 4,191 (out of the total 7,543) garbage trucks meeting the standards, equivalent to around 55 per cent.

The department suggested a plan to sort waste at source for the 2023-25 period, aiming for comprehensive household solid waste sorting following the 2020 Law on Environment Protection.

Plans underway

At present, Thủ Đức City and districts 4, 8, and 12, as well as Bình Tân, Bình Thạnh, Bình Chánh, Củ Chi, Hóc Môn and Nhà Bè are investing to upgrade 16 trash collection points.

Among these, two in District 12 and Thủ Đức City have been brought into operation, one is under construction, two are undergoing review and approval procedures for investment, while a further 11 are being adjusted in terms of planning, land clearance, investment registration and procedures, as per regulations.

Regarding solid waste treatment, the city set the goal that by 2025, at least 80 per cent of household waste should be treated in waste-to-energy plants, or recycled.

However, based on the actual progress, the city’s natural resources and environment department has proposed to extend the deadline to 2027.

This figure is also expected to rise to 100 per cent in 2030.

HCM City also has five ongoing projects that aim to transform current solid waste treatment into waste-to-energy models.

The city's People’s Committee has decided on the investment strategy for two projects, one of Vietstar JSC and one of Tâm Sinh Nghĩa Investment - Development JSC.

Each of them would be able to process around 2,000 tonnes of waste per day.

The remaining three projects, including those of Tasco JSC, Vietnam Waste Solutions Inc and HCM City Urban Environment Co Ltd, are finishing legal procedures for investment.

The municipal People’s Committee has also assigned the Refrigeration Electrical Engineering Corporation (REE Corp) to conduct a pre-feasibility study on a solid waste treatment and energy recovery plant, which is expected to be located at the city’s Northwest Solid Waste Treatment Complex as part of a public-private partnership (PPP). — VNS