Strict action will be taken against violations at the Len Chua quarry.

(Baonghean) - Although the authorities have directed the stone quarrying enterprises at Len Chua mine (Quynh Xuan ward, Hoang Mai town) to fill in the excavated areas, restore the environment, and bring the areas that have been mined beyond the permitted depth back to a safe state, all directives have been ignored by the enterprises...

Rugged Len Chua

Through the Nghe An Newspaper hotline, residents of Blocks 6 and 9, Quynh Xuan Ward (Hoang Mai Town) reported that the mining, processing, and transportation of stone by businesses in the Len Chua quarry area are seriously affecting the environment and causing damage to houses…

Visiting this area on the afternoon of August 28, 2017, it was easy to see the environmental pollution along the roads surrounding the Len Chua quarry, as reflected in the residents' complaints. Most of the roads here have only been covered with crushed stone, occasionally watered by tanker trucks, but the constant flow of trucks of all sizes transporting stone creates thick clouds of dust. Furthermore, the quarrying and crushing activities around the Len Chua quarry also release stone dust into the homes and gardens of local residents.

Despite the ban, quarrying continues at the Len Chua quarry, at depths of tens of meters below ground. Photo: PB

When asked, many residents of Block 9 expressed their frustration, as they have been enduring this pollution for decades. Despite petitioning and complaining to various levels of government, numerous media outlets reporting on the issue, and many inspection teams visiting, the problem remains unresolved.

Locals also reported that the blasting operations carried out by businesses to extract stone have seriously affected their homes. "We thought they would stop once they had removed all the stone from the surface of the hill. But unexpectedly, they continued to dig deeper into the ground and blast to extract more stone," one resident said. Due to indiscriminate mining, a vast area of ​​Len Chua is riddled with deep pits, and some even have deep pools of water, hundreds of square meters in size.

It has been learned that at the Len Chua quarry, there were previously three companies licensed by the Provincial People's Committee to exploit minerals: Thanh Xuan Co., Ltd., Xuan Hung Co., Ltd., and Xuan Chung Co., Ltd. After many years of exploitation, the licenses of these companies have expired.

The People's Committee of Hoang Mai Town has issued numerous directives to Quynh Xuan Ward to suspend the illegal mining activities of Thanh Xuan Co., Ltd. and Xuan Hung Co., Ltd., and to require these companies to carry out land leveling, environmental restoration, and erect danger signs in areas where mining has taken place below the 0-level mark.

However, these companies continued to mine and transport the stone for sale; they even proceeded to build concrete mixing plants and other structures right in the mining area.

Many houses in Block 6, Quynh Xuan Ward (Hoang Mai Town) were damaged due to blasting during stone quarrying. Photo: NL

According to local residents, the blasting for stone quarrying takes place between 3 and 5 a.m., causing tremors and cracks in houses. Witnessing the damage in many houses, the extent is evident, with numerous vertical and horizontal cracks extending for several meters across the pillars and walls…

Strict action is needed.

According to a representative from the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Hoang Mai town, since February 2017, Xuan Hung Co., Ltd. and Thanh Xuan Co., Ltd. have been fined by the Provincial People's Committee for administrative violations related to "mineral exploitation exceeding 10% of the total area or total height of the licensed mineral exploitation zone." Each company was fined up to 120 million VND by the Provincial People's Committee.

In addition, the Provincial People's Committee revoked the mining licenses of these two companies for a period of two months; ordered them to pay fines into the state budget within 10 days of receiving the penalty decision, otherwise enforcement action would be taken; and required them to fill in and restore the environment, implementing solutions to bring areas where mining exceeded the permitted depth back to a safe state. However, these companies failed to comply!

On April 12, 2017, the People's Committee of Hoang Mai Town continued to issue a document requiring the two companies to comply with the provincial People's Committee's penalty decision; and simultaneously demanded that they cease all mineral mining activities and remove machinery and equipment from the mining area that had been exploited beyond the permitted depth. However, these companies still did not comply; in fact, in addition to carrying out illegal mining, they also organized the construction of a concrete mixing plant and workshops.

In response to this situation, on August 17, 2017, the People's Committee of Hoang Mai Town issued a document addressing the illegal construction of houses, concrete mixing plants, and mineral exploitation in the Len Chua area.

The concrete mixing plant of Xuan Chung Co., Ltd. was erected illegally. Photo: PB

On August 18, 2017, a joint inter-agency team comprising representatives from the Departments of Natural Resources and Environment, Industry and Trade, and Construction, in coordination with Hoang Mai Town and Quynh Xuan Ward, conducted an on-site inspection at the Len Chua quarry area. The inspection determined that the transportation and processing of construction stone from the quarry to National Highway 1A was causing dust pollution, affecting the environment and the lives of local residents.

Xuan Chung Co., Ltd. is constructing a single-story house, boundary walls, and foundation pillars for a concrete mixing plant without permission from the competent authorities. Thanh Xuan Co., Ltd. and Xuan Hung Co., Ltd. have not seriously implemented land reclamation and environmental restoration at mining pits below the zero level as stipulated in the administrative penalty decision of the Provincial People's Committee.Xuan Hung Co., Ltd. and Xuan Chung Co., Ltd. constructing concrete mixing plants in the Len Chua area is a violation of land law, construction law, and related regulations…

In accordance with legal regulations, specifically Decision No. 47/QD-UBND of the People's Committee of Nghe An province on promulgating the regulations on coordination in state management of mineral resource protection in Nghe An province, the People's Committee of Hoang Mai town and the People's Committee of Quynh Xuan ward must strictly handle violations by stone mining companies at Len Chua mine.

Only in this way can we demonstrate responsibility, uphold the rule of law, and prevent the people from suffering the negative consequences caused by mining companies!

Nhat Lan - Pham Bang