On May 28, according to PV's source, Cao Bang Provincial People's Committee has just decided to allow the change of land use purpose of more than 63,588m2 of rice land to implement waste disposal site No. 3 under the Na Rua open-pit iron mine exploitation project.
Accordingly, Cao Bang Provincial People's Committee will allow the conversion of land use purpose of 63,588m2 of rice land in Tan Giang ward to implement waste disposal site No. 3.
In the total area above, there are 60,882m2 of specialized rice land and 2,706m2 of other rice land.
Along with that, Cao Bang province decided to lease 96,375.5m2 of land in Tan Giang ward to Cao Bang Iron and Steel Joint Stock Company to serve mineral activities.
The form of land lease is annual payment, not through land use right auctions and no bidding to select investors.
The land use term is until June 30, 2039, in accordance with the term of the mineral exploitation license issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (formerly issued).
According to the decision, the land price for calculating rent for land used for mineral activities is determined to be 60% of the price of residential land in the same location according to the land price list of Cao Bang province.
The leased land is divided into many different locations, including location 1 with an area of 25,744.7m2; adjacent location 1 is 23,574m2; adjacent location 2 is 21,578.8m2 and the remaining adjacent location is 25,478m2.
Cao Bang Provincial People's Committee assigned the Department of Agriculture and Environment, Provincial Tax Department and Tan Giang Ward People's Committee to coordinate in organizing the implementation of the decision.
In which, Cao Bang Iron and Steel Joint Stock Company is responsible for using land for the right purpose, fully fulfilling financial obligations, protecting the environment and returning land according to the mineral exploitation progress.
Over the years, mineral exploitation and processing activities in Cao Bang have brought significant economic efficiency, contributing to maintaining and improving the industrial development index in the local economic structure.
According to data from Cao Bang Provincial Statistics, in the first quarter of 2026, the scale of Gross Domestic Product (GRDP) at current prices is estimated at 6,008,687 million VND; of which the industrial and construction sector contributed 18.45%.
However, the exploitation and processing of mineral resources in the area also leaves quite a few consequences.
Recently, in an investigation into soil contamination with heavy metals, Cao Bang province recorded a fairly large area of pollution.
In 120.23ha of surveyed land, the returned results showed that 27.58ha of land was polluted (22.94%) and 28.45ha was near polluted. Pollution was recorded in 11/20 communes and wards, with many areas having serious levels of hazard.
The area of land contaminated with heavy metals is mainly in areas of mineral exploitation, metallurgy and industrial production. Many hotspots appear at lead-zinc ore processing plants, iron and steel plants, feromanganium plants and iron and lead-zinc mines.
Cao Bang Iron and Steel Complex (where Na Rua iron mine is about to be expanded) alone has 1.05 hectares of soil contaminated with chromium and 1.37 hectares of near-contaminated chromium and nickel (Ni).
During the investigation, specialized forces also discovered toxic metals such as lead, cadmium, arsenic, chromium and nickel detected with contents exceeding the threshold, affecting both agricultural land, forest land and residential areas.
In which, nearly 12 hectares of rice land have been seriously polluted.
After recording the above situation, Cao Bang Provincial People's Committee has requested to strengthen supervision, handle polluted areas and tighten management of mining activities to limit long-term risks to the environment and people's health.
