VietNamNet Bridge – Chairman of the National Assembly’s Committee for Defence and Security Le Quang Binh has asked the government express a commitment on the safety of bauxite projects for the people.

Hungary’s red-mud spill - a warning for Vietnam’s bauxite projects

Chairman of the National Assembly’s Committee for Defence and Security Le Quang Binh

At a National Assembly group meeting this morning, Oct. 22, to discuss the government’s economic-social report, Binh said that bauxite mining projects in the Central Highlands is his great concern.

“Looking at the map, I see that Hungary’s bauxite mining project is located on a flat terrain, not on a slope like ours. Our bauxite projects are located on the Central Highlands. If red mud is not dealt with well and it spills over, not only the Central Highlands but also the coastal plain will be affected,” Binh said.

He said he agreed to bauxite mining but he asked the government to show their commitment to the National Assembly and the people to guarantee the safety of these projects, especially in dealing with red mud.

Deputy Dang Van Khanh said that many National Assembly deputies pointed out problems associated with the bauxite projects in the last NA session and the incident in Hungary is a great warning for Vietnam.

“Minister [of Natural Resources and Environment] Pham Khoi Nguyen said that our red mud reservoirs can sustain earthquakes of eight Richter scale upwards. But even though there was no earthquake in Hungary it will take many years for them to deal with the aftermaths of the red mud spill,” he said.

Minister Pham Khoi Nguyen talked with the press on the sideline of the NA meeting this morning about two red mud reservoirs at the Tan Rai and Nhan Co projects having been evaluated very carefully by Vietnamese and foreign experts.

He said Vietnam had researched the red mud treatment models in Brazil and Australia. “We learn from the models in Brazil and Australia, not Hungary,” he added.

“Hungary contains all red mud in a big reservoir. We divide the reservoirs into many sections. Each section is five hectare in area. When a section is filled up, we discharge mud to another one,” he said.

He said the red mud reservoirs in Vietnam are safe but after the disaster in Hungary, Vietnam needs to conduct further research to enhance the safety level.

The Minister said that a supervisory group comprising officials from his Ministry, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the provinces, where bauxite projects are located, and the relevant agencies was established to supervise the construction of red mud reservoirs.

According to Nguyen, this is the first project that has a national supervisory group.

Thuy Chung – Lan Anh