Residents in Hà Nội’s Sóc Sơn District dismantled barriers to let lorries go in and out of the Nam Sơn Rubbish Dump after a dialogue with Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Nguyễn Đức Chung.—Photo kienthuc.net

HÀ NỘI – Residents in Hà Nội’s Sóc Sơn District dismantled barriers to let lorries go in and out of the Nam Sơn Rubbish Dump after a dialogue with Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Nguyễn Đức Chung.

Earlier they set up barriers to prevent lorries transporting rubbish to the dump because they were angry with the pollution caused by the site.

At the dialogue, residents living in Nam Sơn, Bắc Sơn and Hồng Kỳ communes said that 70 per cent of them were using water from wells, but the water was substandard. They expressed their concern about their long-term health. They proposed the municipal authorities supply free-of-charge clean water all day round, periodic free-of-charge health examinations and necessary medicines.

Local residents asked the city authorities to install ducts to contain water discharged from the rubbish while being transported to the rubbish dump, and have closer management of the transportation to prevent rubbish from being scattered along the way.

A hotline should be set up to receive reports about pollution from residents, they said.

Chairman Chung said that the city authorities always paid great attention to residents’ lives, and would study increasing the allowance for residents as soon as possible.

The city would assign concerned sectors and departments to install clean water pipelines for residents.

The city pledged to issue health insurance cards to the residents this week. Nine teams of medical workers would give initial health examinations to local residents, said Chung.

The Hà Nội Department of Construction would study limiting to about 50 per cent the lighting along the way at night to avoid affecting residents. The department would also build sewers to collect waste water discharged from the rubbish.

Chairman Chung committed to try his best to reduce the environmental pollution, including using modern rubbish treatment methods instead of burying, and building rubbish treatment plants at different places in the city.

The city assigned the Sóc Sơn District People’s Committee to set up a plan to move residents living within 500 metres of the rubbish dump. -- VNS