South Korea helps Da Nang City manage waste, control water pollution

Da Nang City is advancing technical cooperation with South Korea in waste management to control pollution and protect water sources in the Vu Gia - Thu Bon basin.

The Da Nang City Department of Agriculture and Environment recently held a working session and conducted a field survey with a delegation from the Korea Environmental Industry and Technology Institute (KEITI), the Coordination Board of the "Reducing Pollution and Preserving Environmental Flows in the East Asian Seas through the Implementation of Integrated River Basin Management in ASEAN Countries" project (IRBM Project) and the Department of Environment (under the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment).

The activity aimed to assess the need for technical support and technology transfer in domestic solid waste (DSW) treatment, aligned with the goals of controlling pollution and improving water quality in the Vu Gia - Thu Bon river basin.

According to reports at the working session, the volume of DSW generated in the city currently ranges from 2,300 to 2,600 tons per day. During the implementation of the "Building Da Nang - Environmental City for the 2021-2030 period" project, the city identified at-source waste segregation, leachate treatment, and the control of floating waste in the Vu Gia - Thu Bon river basin as issues requiring a comprehensive technical solution approach.

At the meeting, representatives from KEITI and the Da Nang Department of Agriculture and Environment discussed the procedure to promote the signing of a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in accordance with the 2020 Law on International Agreements. This aims to create a foundation for both sides to enhance technical cooperation while leveraging technical assistance and ODA funds from the South Korean Government.

This is the result of the recent process where KEITI and the IRBM project coordination board collaborated with the Department of Agriculture and Environment to research, survey, and evaluate the need for improving integrated management in the Vu Gia - Thu Bon river basin.

Through the IRBM project's support, the parties identified the technical needs and cooperation orientation between the South Korean Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment (with KEITI as the focal point) and Da Nang City (with the Department of Agriculture and Environment as the focal point) in domestic solid waste management, aiming to improve the quality of the Vu Gia - Thu Bon river basin.

Within the program's framework, the interdisciplinary delegation and KEITI experts conducted a field survey at the Tam Xuan 2 Waste Treatment and Storage Area (Tam Xuan Commune).

Here, the delegation directly inspected the operational processes of sanitary landfill cells, the leachate collection system and treatment station, and the application of HDPE tarpaulins to minimize odors, while assessing the risk of impacts on surrounding surface water sources.

Based on monitoring data and actual survey results, KEITI experts, along with management agencies and the landfill operation unit, exchanged views on technical bottlenecks, thereby discussing appropriate treatment solutions.

Concluding the working program, leaders of the Da Nang Department of Agriculture and Environment assigned the Environmental Protection Sub-Department to coordinate with the Department of Foreign Affairs to synthesize the results and finalize a report to submit to the City People's Committee for consideration, unifying the orientation for signing a technical cooperation agreement with KEITI in the coming time.

Lan Anh