Inspectors close notorious river polluting factory

Ha Tinh (VNA/VNS) - A cassava starch processing factory, run by Taiwanese company Vedan in the north-central province of Ha Tinh , has been shut down after inspectors found it was polluting the Rao Tro river.

Inspections on April 1 found Vedan was discharging untreated wastewater directly
into the local river.

Inspectors say the factory was causing severe environmental pollution because it
has not built a proper wastewater treatment system; there were leaks in one of two
wastewater storage pools pouring into Rao Tro river, diesel oil in cassava drying
facilities were leaking out into the river; a mixture of rainwater and wastewater
from over 50 tonnes of cassava waste gathered in outdoor storage areas was flowing
into a drain leading to the river.

Phan Thang Long, deputy director of the province's Department of Natural Resources
and Environment, said the factory has been asked to close down until it corrects
these four violations.

Truong Vinh Chu, director of the factory, has admitted to the charges and
committed to install the factory's wastewater treatment systems before July.

The Taiwanese-invested factory plans to officially begin operating in November,
with a capacity of 800 tonnes of cassava starch per day.

Vedan has already gained notoriety as a river polluter. Its MSG-plant in the
southern province of Dong Nai was recently found using underground pipes to
dump untreated wastewater into the Thi Vai river for more than 15 years.-Enditem