Ho Chi Minh City now has 14 export processing zones (EPZs) and industrial zones (IZs) in operation. The city is the first in the country to have all EPZs and IZs to operate central wastewater treatment systems with a daily capacity of 53,000 cubic metres. To learn more about efforts to manage and protect the environment in IZs and EPZs, Vietnam Business Forum interviewed Mr Ngo Anh Tuan, Deputy Director of the HCM City Export Processing and Industrial Zones Authority (HEPZA). Thu Thuy reports.
Can you tell us whether the infrastructure systems in EPZs and IZs in the city now meet enterprise and investor requirements for production and business development?
As of June 30, 2011, total investment capital value in HCM City EPZs and IPs reached US$7.7 billion, including investment capital for industrial production, EPZ and IP infrastructure construction, and service supply for industrial production. In general, facilities, equipment and machinery in EPZs and IZs initially met production requirements of investors and workers.
To support the construction and development of EPZs and IZs, the city has made great efforts to build external infrastructure networks connecting to EPZs and IZs in recent years, including trunk roads (National Road 1, Truong Chinh Road, North - South Freeway, East - West Highway, Kinh Te Bridge, Tan Thuan 2 Bridge, etc), electricity, water and telecom networks.
In EPZs and IZs, infrastructure development companies have completed basic infrastructure items for investors to carry out production and business activities, including interconnected roads, power, lighting, telecom systems, water supply and drainage systems. Environmental protection at EPZs and IZs is given high priority. HCM City is the first in the country to have all EPZs and IZs to operate central wastewater treatment systems with a daily capacity of 53,000 cubic metres. All EPZs and IZs have basically completed wastewater treatment facilities connected with all tenants.
How has the city deployed environmental protection at EPZs and IZs in the past time? How has environmental protection violations been dealt with?
Pursuant to Article 36 of the Law on Environmental Protection, in September 2008, HEPZA requested EPZ and IZ investors set up a specialised environmental protection unit managed by an official of infrastructure development companies.
Currently, EPZ and IZ environment protection units have more than 100 staff to test and monitor environment issues and operate wastewater treatment systems. In addition, pursuant to Decree 29/2008/ND-CP dated March 14, 2008 of the Government on regulations on EPZ, IZ and economic zone management, HEPZA has advised the Municipal People's Committee to establish the Investigatory Board to deal with violations and enhance management in all aspects, particularly environmental protection.
Besides, HEPZA regularly holds alternative meetings on environmental management with EPZ and IZ infrastructure development companies to exchange experience and provide timely support in environmental management. After each meeting, the authority has conclusive reports and issues instructive documents on environmental management and protection in EPZs and IZs.
Dealing with serious environmental protection violators, the authority will coordinate with other competent organs like the Municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment, the Environmental Police Department, and district offices of natural resources and environment to perform strict inspection and impose sanctions. The authority will submit cases of violation beyond its power to higher authorities. Apart from imposing administrative punishments, the authority is determined to invite environmental protection violators to listen to their solutions to cope with environmental pollution. In some cases, the authority requires them to reduce the scale of pollution-making stages to ensure that they can process all polluting matter.
If companies excessively discharge wastewater into the environment, we will coordinate with EPZ and IZ infrastructure development companies to stop providing wastewater drainage and clean water supply services for them as provided by Decree 88/2007/ND-CP of the Government. Violators will be named on the HEPZA’s website at
www.hepza.hochiminhcity.gov.vn, aiming to increase public pressure on them.
What has HEPZA done to enhance propaganda activities and raise awareness of environmental protection for enterprises?
Annually, the HEPZA Environmental Management Board organises meetings on environmental protection issues with environmental protection units and companies in EPZs and EZs.
To ensure the highest result of training courses, the authority usually arranges them in EPZs and IZs to encourage all companies to attend. Since 2008, it has organized over 30 training courses. Besides, it has organised many programmes on environmental protection and actively participated in World Environment Day, Clean Water and Environment Sanitation Day, Recycling Day, and Climate Change Day.
From local environmental protection management, does the authority have any proposals for competent organs to enhance environmental management?
To boost environmental management, especially surrounding EPZs and IZs, the natural resources and environment sector needs to coordinate with the agriculture and rural development sector as well as local authorities to check and determine sources of waste to identify those responsible for wastewater discharge which harms the environment. Competent authorities need to guide the State-funded construction of automatic water quality monitoring systems to collect data for managing, supervising and checking wastewater quality at EPZs and IZs, thus quickly discovering violators.
Currently, the Government Decrees and Ministerial Circulars normally “forget” the roles of provincial industrial zone management boards and they do not have powers in environmental protection, resulting in certain shortcomings in EPZ and IZ management.
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