Duc Hoang The most potent weapon of a consumer is to stop consuming. How do we then answer the question: "If we don't use their water, who else will provide it to us?" My family was among those troubled recently over the fact that our son's school was located just one kilometer from the burnt Rang Dong light bulb warehouse (that leaked 15-27 kilos of mercury into the air). Now we've got a new one: polluted tap water and the difficulty in getting bottled water. Since my family and I are not the only ones severely affected by this, since there are millions of us, one would expect the company responsible for the crisis to be hit hard by it too. However, the stocks of Song Da Water Investment Joint Stock Company (code: VCW) on the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM) still went up on Tuesday. There was no chain reaction following a public crisis like what one would see in a movie, where a negative news about a company spreads and causes its stock to spiral … [Read more...] about How can Vietnamese people manage a water supply monopoly?
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A legal framework for water supply essential in Vietnam
Tighter regulations are needed to ensure good quality water is sourced for years to come. A PSI project model implemented in Phu Thanh Commune, Nghe An Province is displayed at a conference in Hanoi. VNS Photo That was the message delivered by Nguyen Thi Hong Khanh, from the Ministry of Construction’s Technological Infrastructure Department. She believes a solid legal framework is necessary to make sure there is plenty of water for future generations. “We need a scheme for the Water Supply Law, and submit it to the Government and the National Assembly,” Khanh said. “It is needed to survey and catalogue important sources to have an effective protection, exploitation and use plan.” There are more than 200 water supply enterprises, mainly operating as joint stock companies. The national programme to ensure water supply and prevent water loss in the 2018-25 period has been implemented to promote investment and improve modern and energy-saving water … [Read more...] about A legal framework for water supply essential in Vietnam
Tap water safe, but don’t use it just yet: Hanoi officials
Nguyen Nhat Cam, director of the Hanoi Center for Disease Control, said all eight tap water samples collected Monday met safety standards for all 107 parametric values including styrene, a carcinogenic that had been found in excessive quantities in supplies to southwestern Hanoi. "All values are within allowed limits. However the samples were collected three days ago, so we still recommend that people do not use the water supplied by the Da River water plant from Wednesday night for drinking or cooking," he said, adding that the city had instructed that the water supply resumes so people could clean their water tanks. The center is still working with the National Institute of Occupational and Environmental Health to collect water samples daily, and another announcement would be issued once the water is safe for consumption, Cam said. Regarding the concentration of styrene 1.3-3.6 times the allowed limit in samples collected Thursday and Friday last week, Cam admitted that while Vietnam … [Read more...] about Tap water safe, but don’t use it just yet: Hanoi officials
Criminal probe launched into oil contamination of Hanoi water source
The river is the fresh water source for the Vinaconex Water Supply Joint Stock Company (Viwasupco), which supplies potable water to 250,000 families in 10 districts in southwestern Hanoi. They are looking to press charges of causing environmental pollution. On Tuesday last week, a 2.5 ton truck was seen dumping used oil into a mountain creek in Phu Minh Commune, Ky Son District. The oil spread contaminated the Tram Stream and then the Dam Bai Lake, where water is stored to be processed by Viwasupco. Two days later, Hanoi residents detected an unpleasant, pungent odor in their tap water. Tests of the smelly water by authorities later found that the level of styrene, an organic compound that is probably carcinogenic, was 1.3-3.6 times higher than normal. Hanoi authorities then warned residents that they should not use the water for drinking or cooking, only for other purposes like washing clothes and bathing. They also demanded that Hoa Binh and local police find the truck and the … [Read more...] about Criminal probe launched into oil contamination of Hanoi water source
Can officials be trusted to make responsible statements during a crisis?
Ngo Tu Ngan "The water is fine now," a district official told Tu, a neighbor. Relieved at this official confirmation, Tu, in his 40s, immediately changed the water in his five shrimp farms. "What happened next...," Tu choked on his words as he tried to speak to my father, his face taut and lined. After losing the shrimp, Tu and his family did not have much left and had to sell pieces of land that they'd used to breed shrimp for a living. The day Tu signed the papers to sell the land, he cried. Those tears would never wash away the suffering farmers in the area have had to endure. Tu's sad story happened two years ago in my hometown, a village in the Mekong Delta province of Bac Lieu where most locals engaged in shrimp aquaculture. Tu was not the sole victim of misinformation, of course. The water sources in my hometown had become badly polluted those days. We'd read in the news that the pollution was caused by factories dumping untreated waste into the local river. But authorities … [Read more...] about Can officials be trusted to make responsible statements during a crisis?