Representatives of the Vinh City People's Council proposed the establishment of a rapid response team to penalize environmental violations.

(Baonghean.vn) - According to Mr. Nguyen Hoai An, Chairman of the People's Committee of Vinh City, environmental protection is primarily the responsibility of the wards and communes.

Delegate Le Van Long - Secretary of the Party Committee of Le Loi Ward: "The penalties for environmental sanitation violations are not strict enough." Photo: Thanh Le

During the group discussion session at the 4th meeting of the 21st term of the Vinh City People's Council, delegates suggested that there has been no improvement in environmental sanitation.

Regarding this issue, delegate Le Van Long, Secretary of the Party Committee of Le Loi Ward, reflected: The current situation in Vinh City is characterized by indiscriminate waste disposal, especially by businesses along the streets, where garbage is dumped at inappropriate times and locations, detracting from urban aesthetics. According to Mr. Long, besides the limited awareness of the people, an equally important reason is the lack of strict penalties for violations.

Mr. Long argued that Decree 155/2016/ND-CP, which stipulates administrative penalties for violations in the field of environmental protection, was issued with strong deterrent sanctions, but the problem is that no ward or commune has dared to impose penalties as prescribed in the Decree.

Regarding environmental sanitation, Mr. Ho Sy Dung, Chairman of the People's Committee of Quan Bau Ward, stated: Voters have complained that the price of environmental sanitation services has doubled, but the quality has not improved. He requested that the city government should expedite environmental sanitation work in the area.

Representative Nguyen Thi Dieu Linh - Deputy Head of the Economic and Social Affairs Committee of the Vinh City People's Council: The environmental criteria for new rural communes in the city are not yet sustainable. Photo: Thanh Le

Mr. Dung suggested that the city should assign more waste collection staff to the resettlement area in Quan Bau ward, as this area is newly established and there is no one to collect the waste generated by residents, leading to unsanitary conditions and affecting the environment and the lives of the people.

Regarding this issue, Mr. Vo Khac Hung, Head of the Legal Affairs Committee of the Vinh City People's Council, stated: "For a long time, we have relied heavily on propaganda and persuasion while the penalties have been too lenient." Mr. Hung cited an example from a monitoring visit by the Vinh City People's Council: in Hung Dung ward, only a fine of 1,150,000 VND per year was imposed for environmental sanitation violations, while in Hung Chinh commune, no fines were imposed. Many communes and wards conducted inspections but almost no violations were dealt with.

According to Mr. Nguyen Hoai An, Chairman of the Vinh City People's Committee: Protecting the environment first and foremost requires emphasizing the responsibility of wards and communes. Photo: Thanh Le

"I suggest that the Urban Management Department should establish a rapid response team to inspect and penalize violations of environmental sanitation regulations in order to have a deterrent effect," Mr. Hung proposed.

Meanwhile, Ms. Nguyen Thi Dieu Linh, Deputy Head of the Economic and Social Affairs Committee of the City People's Council, argued that the environmental criteria in the city's new rural communes are not sustainable. When inspection teams come to assess the communes, they organize clean-up campaigns from house to street, but after the inspection, everything is back to how it was before.

Responding to this issue, Mr. Nguyen Hoai An, Chairman of the Vinh City People's Committee, affirmed: The responsibility for environmental protection rests primarily with the wards and communes. Wards and communes are responsible for inspecting and handling cases where restaurants and businesses litter indiscriminately.

The problem of indiscriminate waste disposal is due to the inadequate work of the wards and communes, requiring the city to intervene. The Chairman of the People's Committee of Vinh City requested the heads of wards and communes to implement Decree 155/2016/ND-CP on administrative penalties for violations in the field of environmental protection, and to strictly inspect and penalize those who violate environmental sanitation regulations.

Thanh Le