The Ha Noi People's Committee has introduced fines of up to VND15 million (US$789) for people caught illegally discharging solid and domestic waste. It's the first time the city's People's Committee has published administrative punishments for activities that pollute the environment.
Under the new rules, people who illegally transport solid waste could face fines of up to VND10-15 million ($526-789), those caught littering city streets with solid waste could be fined VND5-10 million ($263-526), and those caught discharging domestic waste could be fined between VND100,000-300,000 ($5.2-15.7).
In addition to fines, violators would also be required to rectify the effects that their waste disposal caused on the environment. Activities that obstruct waste management would also be liable to punishment in accordance with environment protection laws.
Nguyen Van Khoi from the Ha Noi People's Committee said the newly applied regulations would require organisations and individuals producing solid waste to collect and treat it. Organisations and individuals that discharge solid construction waste have been asked by the Committee to sign contracts with waste management companies for suitable transport and treatment, said Khoi.
The new rules were only the first step to classify and control waste to ensure the development of an effective recycling system that minimises the amount of waste buried in landfills, added Khoi.
Nguyen Thi Thanh, a worker of the city's Urban Environmental Hygiene Company, said that the fines were strict enough to discourage people from discharging waste in public places.
However Thanh said she wondered whether the city's Transport and Public Works Department would allocate enough officers to enforce the regulations.
Another resident, Tran Thi Nga, who lives on Tran Phu Street, said the problem was that people often arrived home after the garbage collectors had passed their houses, leaving them with no other option but to litter their domestic waste on the street.
Statistics released by the ministry show the average amount of garbage discharged daily by each household amounts to between 0.6kg in rural areas and about 1kg in urban areas in Ha Noi– rates that are steadily increasing.
Each day, more than 3,500 tonnes of rubbish are discharged in Ha Noi.