Waste covers the shore at a dock in Sa Huỳnh of Đức Phổ Town in Quảng Ngãi Province. The central province has urgently called for investment in waste treatment projects in 2024-25. — Photo courtesy of Trần Lan Anh

QUẢNG NGÃI — The central province aims to commence construction of the Dung Quất integrated waste treatment complex on 71ha in Tịnh Phong district with an investment of VNĐ600 billion (US$24 million).

Director of the provincial department of natural resources and environment, Nguyễn Đức Trung confirmed that the project investor, Quảng Ngãi urban environment company, has been preparing to build the plant with a capacity of 1,000 tonnes, including 500 tonnes industrial waste per day, in the first phase.

The project's second phase would double the treatment capacity to 2,000 tonnes per day, to deal with increasing daily amounts of waste discharged in the province.

Trung said the complex would help collect and process the current 748 tonnes of daily household waste in the province and the central region.

He said it will focus in classification, recycling and incineration in treatment of an estimated 2,400 tonnes each day by 2030.

Đức said the province has been struggling to attract investors in waste treatment.

A waste treatment plant is built at Phổ Thanh ward in Đức Phổ town of Quảng Ngãi Province. The plant failed to operate as local residents protested its unappropriated location. — Photo courtesy of MD company

In 2019, the first solid waste treatment plant, built at cost of VNĐ60 billion (US$2.7 million) by MD Trading and Environmental Technology company, failed to operate as local residents in Phổ Thạnh commune protested the location of the plant.

The plant was planned to treat 50 tonnes of rubbish per day, all rubbish discharged from 15 communes and towns of Đức Phổ Town, by incineration.

Waste sorting at the source is not yet practiced in the province, so serious pollution at dumps is still a threat to beaches, lagoons and residential quarters in the tourism destinations of Sa Huynh and Đức Phổ township.

The province has also called for investment at a household waste treatment project on 17ha in Phổ Nhơn ward of Đức Phổ town in 2024-25. — VNS