VietNamNet Bridge – While the other localities dream of waste treatment plants, the Mekong Delta’s most modern plant in Vinh Long Province is shutting down, even though locals have been living with it for the last several years.

When reporters asked the way to theHoa Phu open cast dumping ground , a local man said: “It is no more the dumping ground, it is now a ‘mountain’ of garbage”.

The Hoa Phu dumping ground, close to the Highway No 1A, was set up in 1997 as the place where the waste in Vinh Long Province is gathered.

One local resident said that about 100 tons of garbage is brought there every day, a volume big enough to create a new mountain of garbage after two months.

The garbage treatment has been undertaken by the Vinh Long Public Works Company, which buries it under the earth and sprays chemicals to dispel the bad odor.

Tran Van Sinh, a local in Hoa Phu Commune, said the dumping ground has “poisoned” the locals for the last many years. According to him, well-off people all have left the area, while only the poor remain to suffer the pollution.

Truong Minh Dong, the owner of a guest house, complained that he now has to sponge off of his children, because the dumping ground nearby has kept guests away.

Meanwhile, Vo Van Hoang, the owner of a breeder fish establishment, complained that he can no longer make money in the rainy season. When it rains, the water leaks from the dumping ground, killing his fishes.

Hoang said he cannot understand why the garbage cannot be treated by the waste treatment plant, advertised as the most modern one in Mekong Delta.

The plant, capitalized at VND238 billion, was built in late 2009 on an area of 8 hectares by the Phuong Thao Investment and Development JSC. It began operating on a trial basis in late 2011 with a capacity of 300 tons per day.

However, the plant, which uses German technology, has been left idle since only a short time after it went into operation.

A local official revealed that there are disagreements between the Vinh Long provincial People’s Committee and Phuong Thao.

In April 2013, local authorities decided to assign Phuong Thao to treat 100 tons of garbage a day for a fee of VND240,000 per ton. However, Phuong Thao only could run for six months before it had to suspend operation.

According to Phuong Thao’s General Director, Lieu Cat Phuong Thao, the volume of garbage provided to the company is too small, amounting to 1/5 of the designed capacity. Meanwhile, the service fee of VND240,000 per ton, is not high enough to cover expenses.

Nguyen Van Dau, Director of Vinh Long’s Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, affirmed at a press briefing on April 15 that Phuong Thao had been forced to suspend operation because the plant operated ineffectively, while the treated waste water could not meet the legal standards.

Dai Doan Ket