Is there a correct procedure and can pollution be stopped?!

(Baonghean) - According to experts, pesticides cause serious environmental pollution, such as environmental poisoning in soil, water, and air, and are one of the causes of climate change. However, for a long time, people in Tan Long - Tan Ky commune have had to live with a "huge" warehouse of pesticides left behind by Vuc Rong Farm.

Faced with the above situation, in early 2013, the “Project to treat environmental pollution of the remaining plant protection chemical warehouse at Vuc Rong Farm” was implemented with a total estimated budget of 11 billion VND. The project is expected to be completed within 1 year. People are happy, they will be free from living with toxic chemicals. However, during the project implementation, the construction unit made the pollution worse. The chemical warehouse was dug up and turned upside down, but the contaminated soil has not been thoroughly treated, the system of ditches surrounding and separating the treatment area from the residential area is poorly implemented...

Arriving at Tan Long - Tan Ky, the sun was just rising. Right from the center of the commune, one could smell the faint smell of pesticides. According to the people's reflection, in 1968, Vuc Rong Farm built a pesticide warehouse (the largest in Tan Ky district) in Tan Long commune. Many types of toxic pesticides used to spray to prevent diseases on short-term and long-term industrial crops were gathered at the warehouse for many years...

Mr. Hoang Ngoc Phuong in Tan Lap hamlet sadly said: 2 years ago, my mother died of cancer due to radiation from the pesticide warehouse. You see, when it rains, water flows from the pesticide warehouse into the village, seeping into the well, it's very scary. After the rains, the water in my family's well has a yellow scum and smells bad. Currently, my family does not dare to use the well water for drinking, only for bathing. We have to go to other hamlets to get water for drinking and eating. Every time it's sunny, the smell of pesticides rises strongly, surrounding the village, making the air extremely stuffy. Mr. Phuong also complained: My little child has had stomachaches and difficulty breathing for the past few months, and has to go to the hospital regularly for treatment.

In addition, Mrs. Sau's family lives about 100m away from the pesticide warehouse. Mrs. Sau confided: "Because the house is too close to the pesticide warehouse, the children had to move to another place to ensure safety, leaving only the two grandparents at home." Due to old age, Mrs. Sau and her husband cannot go to other villages to fetch water, and still use the water that has seeped from the toxic pesticide warehouse for daily activities and cooking. But Mrs. Sau was still very "confident": The project contractors here said, just rest assured to use well water, it is not contaminated, there is no problem...". Hearing the story, Mrs. Sau's teapot for guests was still intact, no one dared to drink. The pesticide warehouse remained in the center of the commune, surrounded by hundreds of local wells and dozens of large and small ponds. Outside the residential area, the school system from junior high school to primary school and kindergarten were all polluted with air and water sources. According to many people, since the construction unit dug up the pesticide warehouse to treat the pollution, the smell of pesticides was even stronger and more unpleasant than before. Mr. Trinh Gia Hieu - Head of Tan Lap hamlet said: Tan Lap hamlet has 84 households with 84 wells, more than 10 people have died of cancer. The construction unit needs to urgently complete the project, when the rainy season comes, the overflowing water from the pesticide warehouse will be very dangerous for the residential area here.

The drainage ditch at the treatment facility is still rudimentary.

Mr. Tran Van Tinh - Vice Chairman of Tan Long Commune People's Committee said: The pesticide warehouse treatment project has 2 packages. The first package is to treat contaminated soil by packing it into bags. The second package is being treated, but around the construction area, there are no trenches or walls to separate it, so when it rains heavily, water can easily seep toxic substances out. Not to mention that when the sun is strong, or after heavy rain, the smell of pesticides is stronger.

The process of treating pesticide warehouse pollution, according to the project of the construction unit, will be carried out as follows: For soil heavily contaminated with pesticides, it will be scooped up onto the yard, dried naturally to a moisture content of less than 20%, then crushed to a grain size of 2 mm, mixed with 10% black sand and poured into the treatment pit in layers according to the design and mixed with chemical solution, rolled, planted grass and closed the field. For soil lightly contaminated with pesticides, it will also be brought onto the drying yard, crushed, mixed with chemical solution, mixed with microbial fertilizer according to the ratio and buried in the ground.

Witnessing the pesticide warehouse area being treated by the construction unit: Mainly using excavators, digging up messy piles, a worker used a hose to spray chemicals on the pile of soil that had just been dug up. Entering the treatment area, the smell of pesticides rose up so strong and suffocating that everyone felt dizzy. The workers were working without wearing masks, just wading into the ground like they were working in the fields. The project was started in early 2013, but up until now, they have only been digging ditches around to hold back the water. Observing, we see that the banks of this ditch are only dug very roughly into dividing trenches. According to standards, the ditches must be built with concrete to keep the water from overflowing.

Many people are worried about the above treatment method, some people think that the contaminated soil needs to be moved to another place for treatment?! Soil contaminated with pesticides is buried and compacted (if done according to the construction project's procedures) underground, when it rains it still seeps into wells and village ponds, affecting health and causing many incurable diseases?!

Talking with Mr. Chu The Huyen - Deputy Director of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment about the issues that people have reflected above. Mr. Huyen said: "We have already met to discuss, if there is anything, please meet with Mr. Dung - Director, Head of the Department of Environment". Mr. Ho Si Dung - Director, Head of the Department of Environment explained: "The construction unit has used corrugated iron to cover the surrounding wall, lined it with tarpaulin, has a misting system to reduce odor, the investor also has a contract with a consulting and supervision unit, in addition, there is also community supervision from the commune, it is best for you to go there and find out...".

Asked about the commune's community supervision, Mr. Tran Van Tinh - Vice Chairman of Tan Long Commune People's Committee expressed surprise: We don't know anything, they closed the door and didn't let anyone in, we only saw that when the construction was going on, the smell of pesticides became stronger.

Mr. Nguyen Van Hoa - Chairman of Tan Ky District People's Committee suggested: The construction unit needs to handle the technical process properly, not causing more pollution to the people, and needs to construct before the rainy and stormy season.

According to experts, to effectively handle and overcome environmental pollution caused by residual pesticides, it is necessary to implement it synchronously and properly. It is necessary to analyze the original chemicals into two parts, heavily contaminated soil and less contaminated soil. Thoroughly treat the original chemicals and heavily contaminated soil by burning them in cement kilns. The less contaminated soil needs to be treated using biological technology combined with microorganisms, and at the same time, thoroughly and permanently isolated in concrete tanks to prevent the spread of pollution into the environment and protect people's health.

It is thought that the relevant authorities need to have an overall assessment of the pollution level (water, air and soil pollution) in the entire affected area of ​​Tan Long commune, in the most objective and accurate way. In particular, it is necessary to urgently analyze water samples from drilled and dug wells in all affected areas to warn. According to incomplete statistics, there are hundreds of households in the affected area of ​​Tan Long commune, many households have to go to other places to get water for use, but most of them are using local well water, which is very harmful to health. During the current pollution remediation construction process, if people are still using water contaminated by pesticides, without any notice or warning, it is necessary to review the responsibility of the relevant authorities and project investors...

Van Truong