Local people drive pass the Rạng Đông light bulb warehouse in Hà Nội's Thanh Xuân District. The fire in August sparked public concern over mercury pollution that forced surrounding households to flee.

The indicators are among the urgent solutions being worked on by the ministry following instruction from the Government.

They include 27 criteria to evaluate the implementation of environmental protection tasks and to public satisfaction over the quality of the living environment.

The first part focuses on the proportion of health facilities with qualified wastewater treatment facilities and the proportion of domestic solid waste that is classified at source.

This refers to the ratio of facilities causing serious environmental pollution, the number of environmental scandals caused by untreated waste, and the proportion of the urban population with access to clean water through a centralised water supply system. It also mentions response times to recommendations about pollution submitted via hotlines.

The second part assesses satisfaction over living space, which will be calculated by a sociological survey.

The indicators have already been piloted in certain cities and provinces since the start of November, and the ministry has instructed them to provide feedback by January 15 before rolling the scheme out nationwide over 2020.

People's Committees have been encouraged to offer recommendations and solutions to improve the effectiveness of the implementation of the indicators. VNS

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