QUẢNG NGÃI  — Talks were held between authorities of central Quảng Ngãi Province and local residents to address pollution caused at a local dumping site this morning after residents blocked garbage trucks from entering the site for days.

The provincial People’s Committee, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Tư Nghĩa District’s People’s Committee and representative from Urban Environment JSC and North Investment and Development Construction JSC joined the dialogue.

In the past several days, residents in Nghĩa Kỳ Commune had complained about the smell and the water leaking from the dumping site of the local waste treatment plant and blocked garbage trucks from entering the plant. As a result, more than 800 tonnes of garbage was left untreated.

Residents said they had reported the pollution to the local authority on several occasions, but there was no improvement yet.

During the meeting, Nguyễn Quốc Tân, deputy director of the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment sent an apology to local residents, saying the department was partially responsibility for the pollution.

Trần Bình Minh, from An Hội Nam 2 Village said he and other households had lived near the site for years, and they could not bear the smell any longer.

It has really affected the lives of people, Minh said, adding that the authorities needed to find solutions to end the pollution.

Minh said the waste treatment plant, an investment by North Investment and Development Construction JSC, was opened while the construction process was not completed adding that local residents had blocked the trucks as a way of protesting the company.

In reply, Tân said the dumping site previously belonged to Quảng Ngãi Province’s Urban Environment Company, and is now under the management of North Investment and Development Construction JSC.

The provincial Urban Environment Company was in charge of transporting garbage to the dumping site, and the process of waste treatment would be the job of North Investment and Development Construction JSC.

Currently, North Investment and Development Construction JSC had not completed its waste treatment technology, causing horrible odour and affecting local residents. The company had sprayed sterilised chemicals to reduce the smell, he said.

Nguyễn Tấn Phát, representative of the company said they were completing the construction of waste treatment plant. As planned, the plant would be finished in September.

The plant would continue receiving garbage transported by the Urban Environment Company in the coming months.

Nguyễn Cung, in Hội Nam 2 Village said about 340 tonnes of garbage was transported to the dumping site each day. If the company continued receiving garbage, he added, local residents would suffer until September.

Nguyễn Hồng Hà, chairman of Nghĩa Kỳ Commune’s People’s Committee said the provincial authority should find another dumping site while the plant was under construction. 

At the meeting, deputy director of the department Tân concluded that the department would inspect and push the progress of building the waste treatment plant.

Tân said the department would inform local residents if they have found an alternative site in the next months. — VNS