VietNamNet Bridge – The benefits from the titanium exploitation are much smaller than the loses localities incur. Especially, the local people’s lives have been upset by the exploitation.

The attendants at the international workshop on titanium exploitation held in Vung Tau City on May 14-15 all expressed their concern about the lack of control over the titanium exploitation which has badly affected local people’s lives.

On April 15, 2013, the government inspectors announced the conclusions about the wrongdoings in licensing titanium projects, exploitation and processing in Binh Dinh province in 2004-2011. The inspectors requested the provincial authorities to settle the problems.

However, the titanium exploitation in a massive scale still continues, which has caused serious pollution at titanium mining areas, mostly located in the two districts of Phu My and Phu Cat.

Here in the province, while the old mining sites have not been rehabilitated, new mining sites have appeared in the Nhon Hoi Economic Zone.

Binh Thuan is rich in minerals. Especially, it has the biggest reserves of titanium – zircon ores, estimated at 558 million tons. However, while the provincial authorities still fumble about the optimal solution for titanium exploitation, the ores have been exploited illegally by individuals and institutions.

In the central province, from the white sand area of Hoa Thang in Bac Binh district to the tourism sites in Thuan Quy commune of Ham Thuan Nam district, several groups of people can be seen going every day to the sand hills with digging tools to exploit titanium.

Son My commune in Ham Tan district is believed to be the place where the titanium exploitation has been carried out in the largest scale. The exploitation activities here are carried out both day and night. A local resident said one person can pocket VND700,000 just overnight.

A report of the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment showed that Vietnam has some 664 million tons of titanium ores, mostly found in the coastal provinces from Thanh Hoa in the central region to the southern province of Ba Ria – Vung Tau. 83 percent of the reserves have been found in the areas with red sand layer, including Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan and Ba Ria – Vung Tau.

The report also showed that in the central provinces alone, there are 40 exploiters who are carrying out the mining at 38 mine areas. Vietnam has been mostly exporting raw ores; therefore, the State can only collect modest tax from the exports.

While titanium ores have been exploited in a large scale, the sums of money paid to the state budget remains modest, and the environment has been damaged. It is obvious that the benefits from titanium exploitation make nothing if compared with the losses the localities have to incur.

In Binh Dinh province, since the forests have been destroyed, people now suffer from the sand storm regularly, especially on hot days. Some people in My Thanh commune said they have to have lunches in mosquito nets. They also complained that they have nowhere to hang washed clothes, because the sand may attack the clothes any time.

The people living near the titanium mines have been living in the thirst for clean water. Phan Van Tong in My An commune of Phu My district said his water well once provided water to tens of households in the region. However, since the day the titanium mine was opened, the well has got exhausted.

NLD