On January 14, the Quang Tri Province Investment and Construction Project Management Board confirmed that the wastewater treatment plant under the Cua Tung Fishing Port Upgrade and Repair Project in Vinh Linh District (Quang Tri Province) has been completed. However, the handover process is still facing difficulties due to lack of funds to organize operations.
The above wastewater treatment plant uses flotation technology combined with biology (microbiological treatment) so it must operate continuously to maintain the life of microorganisms. To operate, it must have funds to pay for electricity and other costs during operation.
Currently, the project has not been handed over for use, the Provincial Construction Investment Project Management Board (project investor) has not been able to complete the project's final settlement to hand over public assets to the Quang Tri Fishing Port Management Board for exploitation and use. This means that there is no basis for developing a plan for asset management and operation as well as proposing to competent authorities to allocate management and operation costs.
Mr. Nguyen Thanh Binh - Director of the Quang Tri Provincial Investment and Construction Project Management Board said that the unit has proposed the Quang Tri Provincial People's Committee to unify the policy, assign relevant units to receive, put into operation and use the above wastewater treatment system; assign the Department of Finance to advise the Provincial People's Committee to arrange funds for the Quang Tri Fishing Port Management Board to organize the operation of the wastewater treatment plant after putting into operation and use during the time when the asset management and operation plan has not been developed.
In response to the above proposal, on January 13, the Office of the Quang Tri Provincial People's Committee conveyed the opinion of the acting Chairman of the Quang Tri Provincial People's Committee, Ha Sy Dong, on assigning the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to preside over and coordinate with relevant units to review and evaluate the proposals of the Quang Tri Provincial Investment and Construction Project Management Board, to advise the Quang Tri Provincial People's Committee in accordance with regulations.
Also on January 13, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development assigned the Provincial Fishing Port Management Board to coordinate with units to review and inspect the results of overcoming existing issues in the wastewater treatment plant project that were previously pointed out; at the same time, study the investor's proposed content to advise the Department to prepare a written report to the People's Committee of Quang Tri province.
Regarding the project to upgrade and repair Cua Tung fishing port, Lao Dong Newspaper has had many articles and information about the risk of closing the fishing port after upgrading because there is no wastewater treatment system.
Previously, in 2019, the Prime Minister approved a project to build and upgrade fishing logistics facilities in Quang Tri province with a total investment of VND400 billion. Of which, the Cua Tung Fishing Port upgrade and repair project had a total investment of VND50 billion. However, during the upgrade process, there was no wastewater treatment system.
Since 2021, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of the province has reported and requested the People's Committee of Quang Tri province to direct the Provincial Construction Investment Project Management Board (project investor) to allow adjustment of the project phase 1, by choosing the technical stopping point of the anchorage area combined with Bac Cua Viet fishing port, to synchronously invest in Cua Tung fishing port, including the wastewater treatment system. However, the investor is still slow to implement despite the direction of the People's Committee of Quang Tri province. As a result, when the fishing port upgrade project is completed but lacks a wastewater treatment system, if it operates, it will violate the Law on Environmental Protection 2020.
Meanwhile, Cua Tung fishing port is a large fishing port in Quang Tri province. This is one of the fishing ports announced by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to be designated to monitor fishing vessel output and control fishing vessels to remove the yellow card of the European Commission.
