The collapse of the sludge dam of the Bac Kan Non-ferrous Metals Branch in Ban Thi Commune (Cho Don District) seriously affected hundreds of households in the two provinces of Bac Kan and Tuyen Quang. At the time of the incident, a large amount of sludge was dumped, burying a large area. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has taken samples to analyze the water and sludge waste, determining the level of impact on the environment.
Through assessment, some wastewater indicators at that time exceeded the threshold, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment directed the two provinces to collect the waste. Bac Kan Non-ferrous Metal Company mobilized hundreds of workers and machines to collect sludge. The collection of sludge spilled into the environment was implemented from September 10.
According to the report of Bac Kan Non-ferrous Metal Company, as of early December, the total amount of sludge collected in the three affected communes was nearly 31,000m3. After being collected, the sludge will be transported to the staging area according to regulations.
In Ban Thi and Yen Thinh communes, the collection of sludge from 3 affected households near Ban Nhuong bridge was completed on September 29. In Binh Phu commune (Chiem Hoa district, Tuyen Quang province), the collection of sludge spilled into the environment has basically been completed. In some small, narrow locations where machines cannot reach, manual collection is still being carried out.
In addition to focusing on collecting sludge, the company has also constructed tailings dam No. 1. Including the construction of a 3-compartment settling tank, a monitoring station and an automatic monitoring equipment system. Construction of water treatment tanks, and implementation of the plan to solidify dam No. 1.
A worker at Bac Kan Non-ferrous Metal Company said that after the dredging, the mud will be put into sacks and transported to the collection site. The workload is large so everyone has to work continuously, the waste mud spills over a large area so it is very difficult to collect. In particular, a large amount of mud sinks into the streambed, so it takes a long time to fix.
According to Mr. Nguyen Dinh Hoang - Director of Bac Kan Non-ferrous Metal Company Branch, after the incident, the unit stopped all production activities, mobilizing from 100 to 250 workers and machines to collect mud every day. Positions that cannot use machines will be done manually.
"At the streambed locations, we will use suction machines to collect the mud. Then we will transport it to the truck to take it to the staging area. In Tuyen Quang province alone, the unit will assign about 30 workers to be on duty to collect the waste mud. Remediation and collection of all waste mud is the most important requirement after the incident," said Mr. Hoang.
Speaking to Lao Dong Newspaper, Mr. Dang Dinh Phong - Vice Chairman of Cho Don District People's Committee said that since the dam burst, the authorities have coordinated with the company to fix the problem and clean up the sludge. At the same time, they have focused on statistics and counting to support and compensate affected households to stabilize their lives soon.
