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City cuts power to major polluters
Environmental officials in Ho Chi Minh City cut power to 51 businesses Friday to punish the companies for serious pollution violations.
The city has said it will not reconnect the businesses to the power grid until they change their production methods and stop damaging the environment.
Inspectors from the city Department of Natural Resources and Environment ordered the cut, which included garment and textile producer Viet Thang Jeans Commerce and Production Ltd., and import-export firm Tran Le Ltd.
Inspections of 345 firms in the city came up with the blacklist of 51 firms flouting environmental protection practices.
Wastewater or emissions found at the firms were three to five times more toxic than permitted, said the department.
According to inspectors, punitive measures such as fines and the publishing of offending companies names on the department website had previously failed to discourage the polluting companies.
A survey by the department showed that more than 50 percent of the punished businesses continued to harm the environment after receiving fines and being published on the blacklist.
Most firms would rather pay fines than change their production techniques, an expensive move that often required a price hike, the department said.
Surprise inspections also found that many firms did not use their wastewater treatment plants when they did not know they were being inspected.
thanhnien, VNA
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