VietNamNet Bridge – Environmental crime tends to “mix” with corruption and smuggling while acts that cause environmental pollution are popular, complicated and serious, noted a senior police officer.

Major General Nguyen Xuan Ly, Chief of the Police Agency Against Environmental Crime (C49), made the above comments at a workshop on environment in HCM City on August 1.

Ly said that Vietnam is becoming a dumping ground of developed countries. “Not only rubbish but toxic waste and radioactive waste enter Vietnam,” Major-general Ly warned of the recent import of toxic waste into Vietnam.

“In 2008, a huge volume of toxic waste was imported to the Hai Phong port from South Korea. In other countries, they have to spend $25 million to treat this waste but we paid to import it,” Ly said.

The senior police officer also warned of the situation that some Vietnamese companies imported secondhand batteries and electronic products to collect lead and discharge other toxic chemicals like acid and mercury to the environment.

Ly emphasized that toxic waste could enter Vietnam because of “holes” in the customs agency. “People know that only ‘mandarins’ [officials] can import waste into Vietnam,” Ly said.

He said that acts that cause environmental pollution are popular, complicated and serious in Vietnam.

“I said they are complicated because while we were carrying out investigations, we received many calls of intervention from local officials. For example, when we were investing pollution at hospitals in Hanoi, someone told me ‘are you beating your wife?’ before my wife is deputy director of a hospital…” Ly explained.

Many incapable companies that lack equipment, technology and human resources were licenced to operate in the fields that are association with toxic waste, he added.

“If an offender kills one person, he may be sentenced to death. Environmental crimes that may kill many generations are only imposed fines of several hundreds of million dong,” Ly explained why the law on environment is disregarded.

He said this year the Police Agency Against Environmental Crime would have meet with companies operating in the areas related to toxic waste to seek solutions to better protect the environment.

Trung Thanh