Latest direction of Nghe An Provincial People's Committee on the unusual fish deaths in Quy Hop

The case of unusual fish deaths in Chau Thanh commune has been investigated by the People's Committee of Quy Hop district andDepartment of Natural Resources and EnvironmentReport to the Provincial People's Committee on July 3 and 4, 2024.

Immediately afterwards, on July 4, the Provincial People's Committee issued a directive in Document No. 5603/UBND-NN with the following content: "Assign the Department of Natural Resources and Environment to preside over and coordinate with the People's Committee of Quy Hop district and relevant agencies to urgently inspect and determine the specific causes of environmental pollution (turbid water, unusual fish deaths...) in the Nam Huong stream area, Cai village, Chau Thanh commune to advise the Provincial People's Committee, propose relevant competent agencies to strictly handle violations (if any) according to the provisions of law; report to the Provincial People's Committee before July 10, 2024".

By the deadline, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment has sent a report to the Provincial People's Committee, accordingly, at the time of inspection, Thiec Ha An Company Limited was ceasing operations (the Company reported that it had stopped all production activities from January 30, 2024 to complete related legal procedures), only pumping water from the mining tunnels out.

The overall plan of the tin mining project has been adjusted by Ha An Tin Company Limited (building additional tailings dump, post-selecting wastewater treatment area, selection workshop, etc.); although the General Department of Environment and the Department of Natural Resources and Environment have urged and guided, the documents have not been completed according to regulations.

Wastewater from the Company's mine is pumped and pre-filtered through settling tanks at mine doors No. 1 and No. 6, discharged into the casto cave and flows out at the head of Bac stream, Chau Thanh commune, converging into Nam Huong stream at Trung Thanh spillway, Chau Thanh commune, not reused as stated in the Certificate of completion of environmental protection works of Project No. 02/GXN-STNMT dated May 5, 2017 of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

Ha An Tin Company Limited explained that the amount of water generated from the mines according to actual operations was very large and exceeded the needs of the Company in the ore selection process; at the same time, the mine water was contaminated with iron and had a low pH, so the Company treated this water with lime before discharging it into the environment.

The tailings dumps from the Company’s tin ore processing activities have not been lined. The wastewater and sludge collection and treatment facilities at the No. 6 furnace area are at risk of overflowing and leaking into the environment, especially in the event of prolonged heavy rain.

In the mining, processing and sludge settling pond areas, there are many pipes but their intended use is unknown. According to the Company's report, these are pipes from previous construction items that are no longer used for project activities.

During the inspection and verification process, the Delegation coordinated with the Nghe An Center for Natural Resources and Environment Monitoring to collect wastewater samples from the mine pit that were stored in the settling tank before pumping and discharging (into the casto cave).

At the same time, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment said that from May 23, 2024, the Department of Planning and Investment sent a document to the Provincial People's Committee on reporting on the adjustment of the underground mining and processing project of the eastern part of Suoi Bac tin mine in Chau Hong and Chau Thanh communes, Quy Hop district proposed by Ha An Tin Company Limited.

Based on the inspection results dated May 28, 2024 of the Inspection Team under Decision No. 901/QD-BTNMT dated April 5, 2024 of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, on periodic inspection of compliance with mineral laws for mineral-related organizations in Nghe An province, on June 4, the People's Committee of Quy Hop district issued a decision to administratively sanction Ha An Tin Company Limited with a total fine of VND 250 million and suspend mineral exploitation activities for 4.5 months, starting from June 4, 2024.

On June 17, the Inspection Team of Quy Hop District Police inspected the compliance with the law on environmental protection and mineral resources of Thiec Ha An Company Limited; and transferred to the People's Committee of Quy Hop District to fine Thiec Ha An Company Limited VND 70 million for the act of improperly or incompletely implementing one of the contents of the decision approving the results of the environmental impact assessment report.

On July 3, Nghe An Center for Natural Resources and Environment Monitoring collected water samples at the stream where fish died at the request of Quy Hop District Police.

From the inspection results, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment concluded that the fact that Thiec Ha An Company Limited pumped water from the mine, treated it through settling tanks into the casto cave and flowed out at the source of Bac stream, Chau Thanh commune, causing turbid water with a dark yellow color was acknowledged by the People's Committee of Quy Hop district, the People's Committee of Chau Thanh commune and the Company in the Minutes of the meeting dated July 2, 2024 is true.

According to the Company's explanation, due to the large amount of water generated from the mines in actual operation, which is not in accordance with the content of the approved environmental impact assessment report and exceeds the demand for use in the ore selection process, the Company has treated this water source by sedimentation and lime addition before pumping and discharging it into the environment.

Thiec Ha An Company Limited pumps water generated from the mine, after being treated and settled through settling tanks into the casto cave, which is not in accordance with the content of the Certificate of completion of environmental protection works of Project No. 02/GXN STNMT dated May 5, 2017 of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

Therefore, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment requests the Provincial People's Committee to request Thiec Ha An Company Limited to immediately implement solutions to thoroughly collect waste sources, ensure safety, and prevent incidents; strictly and fully implement measures to collect and treat wastewater and solid waste in accordance with the approved Certificate of completion of environmental protection works...; promptly complete related documents and procedures of the Project in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020 that the Department of Natural Resources and Environment has proposed in Official Dispatch No. 7619/STNMT-BVMT dated November 24, 2022; strictly comply with decisions on administrative sanctions for violations in the fields of minerals and environmental protection...

At the same time, direct the People's Committee of Quy Hop district to inspect and supervise the overcoming of shortcomings of Ha An Tin Company Limited; strengthen inspection and supervision of mineral mines in the area; closely coordinate with the People's Committees of Chau Hong and Chau Thanh communes to closely monitor the compliance with environmental protection laws of Ha An Tin Company Limited; in case of detecting violations (if any), handle them according to authority or recommend competent authorities to handle them according to law provisions.

The Department of Natural Resources and Environment will continue to preside over and coordinate with local authorities and relevant agencies to inspect and supervise the compliance with environmental laws of Ha An Tin Company Limited; will update and report to the Provincial People's Committee after having the results of analyzing the collected water samples...

Following the report of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, on July 11, 2024, the Provincial People's Committee issued a document on the inspection and handling of the unusual fish deaths in Chau Thanh commune, Quy Hop district. Document No. 5809/UBND-NN was sent to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, with the direction of Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Van De: "Assign the Department of Natural Resources and Environment: urgently report the results of the implementation of the tasks assigned by the Provincial People's Committee in Official Dispatch No. 5603/UBND-NN dated July 4, 2024; report to the Provincial People's Committee before July 18, 2024".