VietNamNet Bridge – There has been a fall in the pollution levels of water sources of the Dong Nai River system with Saigon, Thi Vai and La Nga rivers all experiencing improvements, experts told a meeting in HCMC last Friday.

Dong Nai River. (Photo: Internet)

At the meeting to review the five-year environmental protection project of the basin of the Dong Nai River system, the environmental protection committee of the Dong Nai River system said the water quality’s indicator of the system in 2012 has improved overall compared with 2011.

Specifically, the effective treatment of Taiwanese-invested Vedan company as polluter of Thi Vai River’s water, and the operation of a water environment hygiene project in HCMC have helped reduce pollution in downstream areas.

As for the Saigon River, indicators of its biological oxygen demand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) as key pollutants tend to rise towards downstream.

Environmental pollution in the Dong Nai River basin had caused outrage among residents living in the area, who faced a shortage of clean water for agricultural and industrial production and households. Industrial and household wastewater, untreated garbage and medical waste plus mineral exploitation projects had polluted the water for many years.

Due to the limited central budget, budgets allocated for the 2013 national target on environmental protection face a shortfall, said Nguyen The Phuong, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment. Some VND2 trillion has been approved for the project over five years, so the ministry will continue seeking different funds to repair pollution at river basins including the Dong Nai River system’s basin, he noted.

Tran Ngoc Thoi, vice chairman of the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau, proposed the cities and provinces list all pollution sources before taking actions to deal with the problems.

The Dong Nai River system’s basin provides water to a combined population of nearly 18 million people residing in its catchment area encompassing 11 cities and provinces, including HCMC, Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Long An, Tay Ninh, and the Central Highlands.

Source: SGT