Enterprises fined by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment inspectors: A lesson for everyone!

(Baonghean) - Recently, 3 enterprises in Bac Vinh Industrial Park (Vinh City) were fined up to 130 million VND by the Inspectorate of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment for the errors of improperly and incompletely implementing the environmental monitoring and supervision program. Through the incident, it can be seen that not only is it a lesson for enterprises, but relevant State management agencies also need to be more aware of their roles and responsibilities...

Enterprises penalized by the Inspectorate of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment include: Tan Khanh An Company Limited (cigarette and packaging production), Vu Huy Production and Trade Services Joint Stock Company (fertilizer production and trading), Minh Tri Vinh Joint Stock Company (garment). For Vu Huy Production and Trade Services Joint Stock Company and Minh Tri Vinh Joint Stock Company, because of mitigating circumstances, the fine is 10,000,000 VND/company; for Tan Khanh An Company Limited, the fine is 110,000,000 VND.

Tan Khanh An Company Limited (Bac Vinh Industrial Park).

According to the content stated in the penalty decisions, these companies committed administrative violations: "Improperly and incompletely implementing the environmental monitoring and supervision program as prescribed; violating Point d, Clause 2, Article 11 of Decree No. 179/2013/ND-CP of the Government regulating administrative sanctions in the field of environmental protection". According to the representative of Tan Khanh An LLC, the "mistake" was that the units that the company contracted with for monitoring had not been granted a certificate of environmental service activities.

Regarding the reasons leading to the penalty, Tan Khanh An Company Limited sent Official Dispatches No. 08/CV-TKA; 15/CV-TKA to Mr. Le Quoc Trung, Chief Inspector of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, requesting exemption from the administrative decision. The reason is that for many years, Tan Khanh An Company Limited has strictly complied with the provisions of the law; the violations pointed out by the Inspector of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment all stemmed from objective causes. Official dispatches No. 08 and 15 stated: "To implement the monitoring program from 2011 to 2014, we have contracts with two units, namely Natural Resources and Environment Company Limited, Viet Anh Environment and Sustainable Development Company (headquartered in Vinh City), with business licenses issued by the Department of Planning and Investment, with seals and legal representatives signed. The drafting of the contracts was done by Party B. Due to lack of knowledge on environmental protection, we signed monitoring contracts with the above two units; and also thought that these two units had full understanding of the monitoring requirements as well as parameters, monitoring points... and they would do everything. However, through the inspection of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, we discovered the errors.

Moreover, from 2011 to 2014, environmental inspection teams did not detect or warn us, so we did not know how to correct the errors...". Mr. Phan Van Binh, Director of Tan Khanh An LLC said: "With the violations pointed out, we will find a new unit with full functions, tasks, professional knowledge, and equipment to contract for monitoring; in addition, we will thoroughly educate our staff and workers to raise awareness of environmental protection. Tan Khanh An LLC has violated but has not caused any consequences to the environment. Decree No. 179/2013/ND-CP of the Government is a relatively new legal document, we have never been instructed, trained, or reminded by inspection teams. Therefore, we have official dispatches requesting the Chief Inspector of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to review...".

According to documents provided by Bac Vinh Industrial Park Investment and Development Company, every year, this unit fully conducts environmental monitoring as well as analyzes and evaluates the treatment of wastewater and emissions by Resources and Environment Company Limited. In June 2014, the Department of Environmental Protection, Vinh City People's Committee, Dong Nam Economic Zone Management Board, Hung Dong Commune People's Committee and Bac Vinh Industrial Park Investment and Development Company inspected the environmental pollution situation at Bac Vinh Industrial Park.

These units concluded that some enterprises located in Bac Vinh Industrial Park have affected the environment (wastewater discharge of Sabeco Song Lam Factory; emissions of Trung Do Granite Company; noise of Hoanh Son Investment and Development Joint Stock Company), however, they did not detect any administrative violations in the field of environmental protection of 19 enterprises located in the industrial park. Working with the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Vinh City, it is known that on March 2, 2015, implementing Plan No. 05/KH-HDND of the Provincial People's Council, Vinh City People's Committee issued Report No. 37 on the settlement of some opinions and recommendations of voters on the environmental pollution situation in Bac Vinh Industrial Park, Hung Loc Industrial Cluster and the current status of lakes and ponds in the city.

In this report, the Vinh City People's Committee also pointed out the current pollution status from production and business activities but did not specifically assess the compliance with environmental protection laws (environmental monitoring and supervision programs, construction and installation, operation of environmental treatment works, etc.) of enterprises. On April 1, at a working session with the Provincial People's Council on environmental pollution treatment in industrial parks in the economic zone, the Southeast Economic Zone Management Board acknowledged that the environmental pollution situation has been occurring in the economic zone for a long time, although it has been resolved many times but has not been resolved completely. Some of the "hot spots" mentioned are the Sabeco Packaging Factory of Sabeco Song Lam Joint Stock Company and the Children's Toy Factory of Matrix Vinh Company Limited in Bac Vinh Industrial Park; In Nam Cam Industrial Park, there is BSE Vietnam Electronics Factory of BSE Vietnam Electronics Co., Ltd., Frozen seafood processing factory of Hai An Seafood Import-Export Co., Ltd., Fishmeal factory of Minh Thai Son Joint Stock Company, Hanoi - Nghe An Beer Factory of Hanoi - Nghe An Beer Joint Stock Company, Artificial board factory of Tan Viet Trung Joint Stock Company...

Penalty decisions of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment inspectors against 3 enterprises in Bac Vinh industrial park.

Thereby, it can be seen that the limitations of state management agencies that Tan Khanh An Company Limited has mentioned in the official dispatches sent to the Chief Inspector of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment are not without basis. Decree No. 179/2013/ND-CP of the Government regulating administrative sanctions in the field of environmental protection took effect from December 31, 2013. In Article 11 of Decree 179, violations of regulations on detailed environmental protection plans, environmental protection plans under the approval responsibility of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, the Provincial People's Committee or agencies authorized by the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, the Provincial People's Committee are subject to very high penalties.

The fine can range from 60 to 70,000,000 VND for the act of improperly or incompletely implementing the environmental monitoring and supervision program as prescribed (regarding location, frequency or environmental monitoring parameters); from 80,000,000 to 100,000,000 VND for the act of not constructing or operating environmental treatment works as committed in the approved environmental protection project; from 150,000,000 to 200,000,000 VND for the act of not implementing all the contents in the approved environmental protection project... In addition, the additional penalty will be suspension of operations from 1 to 9 months depending on the level of violation to remedy the consequences.

It can be seen that, with the regulations on severe penalties for administrative violations in the field of environmental protection, the Government's goal is to force all organizations and individuals to have correct awareness and comply with regulations on environmental protection. However, compliance with the provisions of the law on environmental protection in the province is still a matter of concern, especially in industrial zones. To solve the problem of environmental pollution, organizations and individuals must have correct awareness and fully comply with the provisions of the law. However, relevant state management agencies must demonstrate their roles and responsibilities. Letting the Inspectorate of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment fine a business hundreds of millions of dong for the error of "not properly and fully implementing the environmental monitoring and supervision program as prescribed" happen in the area is truly a memorable lesson, not only for the businesses being fined!

Nhat Lan - Dao Tuan