The mine of Thiec Ha An Company Ltd. still has 'acid-contaminated' water spilling into the environment???

"Abnormal" phenomenon?

After the incident of Nam Huong stream section passing through Chau Thanh commune turning yellow and having unusual fish deaths between June 30 and July 1, 2024, the cause was determined to be from the discharge of wastewater into the environment ofHa An Tin Company LimitedTherefore, the authorities require this unit to comply with legal regulations, proactively review and evaluate wastewater sources from mines to find solutions for collection and treatment without causing environmental pollution (Document No. 6043/STNMT-BVMT dated August 26, 2024 of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment).

However, on September 30, 2024, Ha An Tin Company Limited urgently reported to the People's Committee of Quy Hop district an unusual phenomenon occurring in their own mine area. That is, a situation of water containing high acid content from the mine overflowing in large quantities, while the enterprise had stopped all mining activities, thereby requesting coordination to verify and find the cause.

Specifically, in Report No. 42/BC-THA dated September 28, 2024, Thiec Ha An Company Limited reported that a large amount of opaque green and white water was found flowing from tunnel No. 1 to the outside. The amount of water at the time of measurement, at 9:30 a.m. on September 30, 2024, was up to 1,679 m3/day and night. At the same time, it was reported that the unusual water source was heavily contaminated with acid (PH=3), and Thiec Ha An Company Limited encountered many difficulties and was costly in handling it. Therefore, it was necessary to report to the People's Committee of Quy Hop district to know about the current situation. "We respectfully request that the District People's Committee promptly conduct an inspection and assessment to grasp the unusual water problems occurring in Quy Hop district and help us find a way to resolve this potentially dangerous difficulty," Thiec Ha An Tin Company Ltd. requested in Report No. 42/BC-THA dated September 30, 2024.

Receiving Report No. 42/BC-THA of Thiec Ha An Company Limited, because on August 6, 2024, this enterprise also sent a document with similar content to the Provincial People's Committee, Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Quy Hop District People's Committee coordinated with Chau Hong Commune People's Committee to organize an inspection of the phenomenon of unusual water flowing out of tunnel No. 1. At the time of inspection, the working group determined that at the location of tunnel No. 01 (coordinates x=2146006, y=534956) there was a source of opaque white water flowing from the tunnel door to the outside with a large flow; using litmus paper to test showed that the water had a high acid content (PH <3). To find the cause, the working group entered the tunnel to check but could not detect where the water was flowing from, nor could they assess whether it was caused by mineral exploitation and processing activities or not?

Regarding Thiec Ha An Tin Company Limited, the working group determined that at the time of inspection, the mine area only had a few workers managing the mine, protecting and operating the wastewater treatment system; there were no mining or ore processing activities, so no wastewater was generated. As for Thiec Ha An Tin Company Limited, because they realized that if the abnormal water source was allowed to flow naturally into the environment, there would be a risk of environmental pollution, causing fish to die... Therefore, they treated the abnormal water source by pumping it to a 3-compartment settling pit, using lime powder and flocculants to neutralize it; after treatment, it was pumped and discharged into the environment towards Mai stream, Chau Thanh commune.

Realizing that the water flowing from the No. 01 mine of Ha An Tin Company Ltd. into the environment showed signs of abnormality, the People's Committee of Quy Hop district took water samples for analysis; at the same time, continued to organize verification to find the cause. On October 4, 2024, the working group organized a surprise inspection at the mining mines of Nghe Tinh Non-ferrous Metals Company Ltd. (above the mine of Ha An Tin Company Ltd.), however, the cause was still not discovered.

No environmental incidents!

The People's Committee of Quy Hop district determined that the situation of water containing high acid content, flowing in large volumes from the mine of Thiec Ha An Company Ltd. into the environment is very worrying. Because the cause could not be found to propose a solution, on October 15, 2024, the People's Committee of Quy Hop district issued Document No. 429/BC-UBND reporting the entire incident to the Provincial People's Committee and the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

Here, the People's Committee of Quy Hop district commented: "The appearance of a large flow of water from the mine of Thiec Ha An Company Limited with a high acidity (pH <3) is an unusual phenomenon, the People's Committee of the district cannot find the cause to handle it. If this water source is not treated according to the correct process and standards, when it flows into the environment, it will pose a risk of environmental pollution, greatly affecting the health of people (this water source is the input water source of Quy Hop town water plant). According to the report of Thiec Ha An Company Limited, although the company has stopped mining and processing ore since the beginning of 2024, the company still has to collect this self-flowing water into a 3-compartment tank every day, treat it with lime powder and flocculants to neutralize, then pump it out into the environment, this treatment is very costly for the company".

At the same time, there was a proposal: “The District People's Committee does not have specialized staff and necessary equipment to find out the cause of this unusual phenomenon, as well as to evaluate whether the treatment of Thiec Ha An Company Limited is in accordance with the technical process or not, and whether the water after treatment is allowed to be discharged into the environment or not. Therefore, the People's Committee of Quy Hop District respectfully requests the Provincial People's Committee to direct relevant departments, branches and sectors to inspect and clearly determine the cause of the above unusual situation, and take measures to completely handle the risk of environmental pollution, which greatly affects people's health...".

Before the report of the People's Committee of Quy Hop district, on October 16, 2024, the Provincial People's Committee issued Document No. 6090/UBND-NN on the inspection and handling of environmental pollution in Chau Thanh commune (Quy Hop). Here, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Van De commented: "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, clearly identify the cause and take measures to ensure that environmental pollution does not occur, affecting people's health; report the results to the Provincial People's Committee on October 30, 2024".