Vietnam/ Towards a plastic pollution-free Vietnam
Plastic pollution, also known as "white pollution" due to the ubiquity of single-use plastics, represents a major environmental challenge for many countries around the world, including Vietnam.
Alarmingly, this waste is having a devastating impact on wildlife, ecosystems and human health. Faced with this growing threat, more rigorous and rapid measures are needed to mitigate their harmful effects.
According to statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, Vietnam discharges around 1.8 million tonnes of plastic waste into the environment every year, of which only 27% is recycled.
The country faces serious plastic waste challenges. Each household consumes an average of one kilo of nylon bags per month. Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City alone dump around 80 tonnes of plastic and nylon bags into the environment every day. Yet treatment and recycling capacities remain limited: 90% of this waste is disposed of by landfill or incineration, and only 10% is recycled. This situation places a heavy burden on the environment, threatening to turn "white pollution" into a veritable ecological catastrophe.
Environmental experts warn of the dangers of poorly managed plastic waste, which pollutes air and water, causes poisoning, disrupts the endocrine system, weakens the immune system and increases the risk of cancer. The repercussions are not limited to humans: animals and micro-organisms also suffer the consequences of this pollution.
In response to this crisis, Vietnam has introduced several policies aimed at reducing plastic waste. Among them, the Environmental Protection Law of 2020 and Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP detail concrete measures to oversee waste management and promote sustainable alternatives.
Specialists recommend that national and local authorities speed up the implementation of regulations and incentive mechanisms to encourage environmentally-friendly production and recycling. It is crucial to step up research and development into advanced recycling technologies, improve collection and processing infrastructures for plastic waste, and introduce selective sorting at source.
In addition, local authorities need to step up initiatives to collect and process plastic waste, while rewarding organizations, companies and individuals who stand out for their actions in favor of the environment. These combined efforts will be essential to curbing the plastic waste crisis and building a more sustainable future.
Source: lecourrier.vn
