The Directive of the Prime Minister on a number of urgent measures to strengthen solid waste management.

On 1/12/2020, the Prime Minister issued the Directive No. 41 / CT-TTg on a number of urgent measures to strengthen solid waste management.

According to the Directive, over the past time, environmental protection has been paid attention and directed by the Party and State and achieved many important results. However, the environmental pollution caused by solid waste continues to increase, which affects human health and the sustainable development of the country. In some localities, the storage, gathering, transfer and treatment of domestic solid waste do not meet the requirements of environmental protection, leading to the "hot" spots on the environment.

The cause of the above situation is that localities have not paid adequate attention to the solid waste management in the locality; mechanisms and policies to mobilize resources from the society to participate in solid waste management, especially waste, are still inadequate; the investment in infrastructure on waste collection, storage, gathering, transfer, transportation and treatment has not met the actual situation; the classification of waste at the source has just stopped at a pilot level in some localities, which has not been reviewed, evaluated and replicated; the communication to raise awareness of the community has not been done regularly and continuously ...

To overcome the limitations and shortcomings in solid waste management, at the same time proactively prevent and minimize environmental pollution, create a fundamental change in solid waste management, in which to attach importance to the waste separation at source; in case of ineligibility for waste separation at source, priority should be given to the investment in treatment facilities with concentrated sorting stage before treatment; apply modern advanced waste treatment technology, make use of useful ingredients in waste as raw materials, fuel, production materials, minimize the generation of secondary waste that needs treatment, the Prime Minister instructed as follows:

+ The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment:

- To review, amend and supplement legal documents according to their competence or submit to competent authorities for promulgation of documents related to solid waste management, pursuant to the Law on Environmental Protection (revised), develop, finalize and issue technical and economic norms on waste collection, transportation and treatment, the regulations on methods of pricing waste treatment services.

- To tensely elaborate and submit to the Prime Minister for consideration and approval of the national environmental protection planning in the first quarter of 2022, including the orientation of the location and size of solid waste treatment zones and concentrated hazardous waste at regional and national levels.

- To review and amend national technical regulations on the environment in solid waste treatment towards more stringent and approaching standards of advanced countries; in the immediate future, to focus on reviewing and amending QCVN 61-MT: 2016 / BTNMT - National technical regulation on domestic solid waste incinerators.

- To develop and submit to the Prime Minister for approval and perform the Program on collection and classification of waste at source; develop technical guidelines on collection and classification of waste at source suitable to regions, urban and rural areas for implementation.

- To develop technical guidelines for the improvement, upgrading and treatment of environmental pollution in unhygienic landfills and the areas polluted by garbage, ensure requirements for environmental protection.

- To strengthen inspection and examination of solid waste management nationwide.

+ The Chairmen of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally run cities:

- To take full responsibility for the classification, collection, transportation and treatment of waste in the area; allocate sufficient annual funds to support the waste management, ensure the classification, collection, transportation and treatment of waste generated in the locality in accordance with regulations.

- To formulate and promulgate incentive policies to attract investment in waste treatment projects with advanced and modern technologies; simplify procedures for investment preparation, construction and operation of waste treatment facilities.

- To review and evaluate existing waste treatment technologies in the area, request treatment facilities to have a roadmap for renewal of waste treatment technology to meet the requirements on environmental protection and proceeding the year of 2023; treat pollution, renovate and upgrade unhygienic waste landfills; work out a roadmap and direct the implementation of the thorough treatment of spontaneous waste landfills in contravention of regulations and prevent the formation of the new ones.

- To review local regulations on solid waste management to ensure compliance with current legal regulations; adopt a roadmap to gradually increase waste collection, transportation and treatment service prices in order to gradually reduce the support from the state budget; not restrict the collection and transportation of ordinary industrial solid waste and hazardous waste from other localities to their respective localities for treatment according to regulations.

- To direct and organize the work of sorting waste at source in accordance with local conditions; ensure that the technical infrastructure meets the requirements of waste classification at source for implementation according to the roadmap as specified in the revised Law on Environmental Protection.

- To urgently review planning related to the location and size of solid waste treatment zones in the area to integrate them into the provincial planning, in line with the orientation in regional planning and the national environment protection planning.

- To specify the form and amount of money that households and individuals have to pay for the collection, transportation and treatment of domestic solid waste based on the volume or volume of waste that has been classified according to regulations of the revised Law on Environmental Protection to minimize generated waste and promote waste separation at source; research and pilot centralized bidding to select waste treatment service providers that meet the criteria of technology, economy, society and environment; ensure publicity and transparency in payment for waste treatment services.

- Provinces and centrally-run cities, including: Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Hai Phong and Can Tho, urgently invest in or put into operation waste treatment plants according to modern and environmentally friendly technology direction; strive to reduce the percentage of waste treated by direct burial method to below 20% by the end of 2025.

- Other provinces strive to reduce the percentage of waste treated by direct burial method to below 30% by the end of 2025; for rural areas, it is necessary to maximize the use of organic wastes for reusing, recycling or self-treating in households.

- To create favorable conditions for the Vietnam Fatherland Front and socio-political organizations to participate, criticize and supervise solid waste management and treatment activities; actively provide information, promote the role of the media in solid waste management activities.

In addition, the Directive also sets out specific tasks for the Ministries: Construction, Agriculture and Rural Development, Health, Industry and Trade, Planning and Investment, Finance, Science and Technology, Police, Information and Communication to perform urgent solutions to strengthen solid waste management.

Source: Hoang Ha