Overloaded with waste treatment
Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Hong (living in the An Binh resettlement area) said that there is currently no daily garbage collection unit in this area. Some people did not know how to handle it, so they had to leave their trash temporarily on the sidewalk. Many people see it like that, and the result is that within the resettlement area, spontaneous landfills are created. "The garbage gives off a foul, strong smell that is very unpleasant. We need to collect garbage, even willing to spend 100,000 VND/month to pay for garbage but why won't anyone take it?" - Ms. Hong was upset.
Similarly, in the residential area planned for garbage collection such as Hung Phu 1, spontaneous landfills also clearly sprung up. Mr. Nguyen Duy Khang (Deputy Head of the Urban Environment Enterprise, Can Tho Urban Joint Stock Company) said that at first this place was a bulky collection point for waste, gradually people brought household waste, broken doors, and cabinets to dump. "Without human resources and means, we cannot handle it all" - Mr. Khang said.
Worse, the temporary garbage collection point in front of the gate of Can Tho Traditional Medicine Hospital (3/2 Street) has not been relocated for many years. On Tran Quang Dieu Street, a spontaneous landfill appeared next to the gate of An Thoi Secondary School, making people bored.
Ms. Tran Thi Thanh Thao (an environmental sanitation worker in Can Tho City) said: "Currently, there is too much garbage and the staff only have that much time, so they can't collect it all".
According to data in the old Can Tho City alone, the average amount of household waste generated was about 650 - 700 tons/day. This figure is expected to continue to increase due to population and economic development in the central area.
Need for a comprehensive strategy
Talking with Lao Dong, Mr. Tra An Dao - Director of Binh Thuy Branch Enterprise, Can Tho Urban Joint Stock Company - was concerned that the collection of garbage in alleys as well as new routes in the area is still difficult. The local propaganda and mobilization work has not received the consensus of a part of the people.
"That is the reason why we have been reported a lot, especially so far, people have not yet classified waste at source" - Mr. Dao explained.
Mr. Truong Minh Duc - Vice Chairman of Long Tuyen Ward People's Committee - said that the ward has also repeatedly launched a campaign to clean up and propagate to call on people to leave garbage in the right place, but it has been repeated every few days. Based on the assigned tasks, in the coming time, the ward will monitor more closely to promptly detect and have solutions to strictly handle violations of landfill in the wrong place.
However, according to Mr. Duc, to do this, it is necessary to have close coordination between relevant parties, while decentralizing and delegating authority appropriately, avoiding overlap and prolonging the processing time as before.
Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Anh - Vice Chairman of Ninh Kieu Ward People's Committee - frankly admitted that in the past months, the ward has applied a form of cold punishment for dumping garbage in the wrong place, but the treatment process is still reserved and not drastic; ward-level officials do not have expertise in environmental fields, so their understanding is not high, currently the locality mainly only uses land officials.
Realizing the limitations, I think it is time to change thinking, eliminate the mentality of being hesitant and giving. In addition, there needs to be a specialized committee in this field to operate, thereby being more effective in applying sanctions" - Mr. Anh proposed.
Regarding this issue, experts say that Can Tho needs to strictly implement garbage storage at the right time and place; research and invest in building modern garbage transfer stations, optimizing the transportation process to treatment plants. That is a long-term goal, and in the immediate future, individuals and groups related to waste treatment in Can Tho must eliminate superficial and cautious thinking; sectors and levels aim to build a comprehensive strategy, strong and effective decisions; do not hesitate to handle responsibilities if they do not fully perform their assigned functions and tasks.
