Vietnam announces environmental protection rankings in cities

Volunteers in Da Nang collect rubbish along My Khe beach (Photo: VNA)

The ministry used the set of Environmental Protection Performance Indicators (PEPI), which was first issued in October 2019. It features a total of 27 component indexes which have been structured into two groups: evaluation of the implementation of environmental protection objectives and tasks, as well as assessing people's satisfaction with the overall quality of the living environment.

The first group primarily focuses on the proportion of health facilities with qualified wastewater treatment facilities along with the proportion of domestic solid waste that is classified at source.

This refers to the ratio of facilities causing serious environmental pollution, the number of environmental scandals caused by untreated waste, and the proportion of the urban population with access to clean water through a centralised water supply system. In addition, it also mentions response times to recommendations made about pollution submitted via hotlines.

Da Nang took the lead in the group with 79.82 points, followed by Ba Ria - Vung Tau with 78.79 points, and Dak Nong with 51.30 points.

Elsewhere, the second group assesses satisfaction over living space, which was calculated through a sociological survey.

Phu Tho topped the rankings with 28.7 points, whilst second place went to Ba Ria - Vung Tau with 28.3 points, and third place was given to Ho Chi Minh City with 27.5 points.

Hanoi only gained 20.5 points, below the national average level of 24.2 points, and therefore it ranked 58th out of all 63 cities and provinces.

This marks the second year that the ministry has released the ratings. Following the results, it requested that localities implement solutions to improve the overall effectiveness of environmental protection and the performance of the PEPI moving forward.