40 tons of dioxin-contaminated activated carbon will be shipped out of Vietnam

On the morning of October 18, in Da Nang, representatives of the governments of Vietnam and the United States held a ceremony to launch phase 2 of the dioxin cleanup project at Da Nang International Airport.

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Vietnam - Mr. Ted Osius (far left) talks with Vietnamese Government officials about dioxin cleanup technology - Photo: DANG NAM

This is also the final phase after the end of phase 1 in May 2016, which resulted in the completion of cleaning up more than 45,000 m3 of dioxin-contaminated soil and mud.

Speaking at the launching ceremony, Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh, Deputy Minister of National Defense, said that phase 2 will continue to clean up an additional 45,000 cubic meters of dioxin-contaminated soil and mud remaining inside Da Nang airport and will complete this work by mid-2017.

“The entire area of ​​land, after being cleaned, will be handed over to Da Nang City to expand the international airport terminal project, serving the APEC 2017 conference. When the host country welcomes many international delegations to attend the APEC conference, including the US president, right on the land that was previously heavily contaminated with dioxin, this means that we have turned a corner of the former battlefield into a place to welcome distinguished guests to Vietnam,” Senior Lieutenant General Vinh said.

Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh talks with Mr. Ted Osius - Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Vietnam - Photo: DANG NAM

According to Mr. Vinh, thanks to the perfect treatment technology sponsored by the US Government, at the dioxin cleanup project at Da Nang airport, Vietnam plans to recover more than 40 tons of activated carbon containing dioxin toxins. The US has committed to bring all of this contaminated coal back to the US for decomposition in the near future because we have not yet mastered the technology to treat the contaminated coal.

Speaking at the ceremony, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Vietnam - Mr. Ted Osius said that the next dioxin cleanup project is Bien Hoa airport with an expected cleanup area of ​​1,400 hectares (5 times the cleanup area at Da Nang airport). The cleanup time is expected to last 10 years. Currently, the environmental assessment report at Bien Hoa has been completed by all parties earlier this year.

It is known that in addition to hot spots such as Da Nang and Bien Hoa, Phu Cat (Binh Dinh), A Luoi (Thua Thien - Hue) and forests along Truong Son that were sprayed with toxic chemicals during the war will also gradually be included in the list.

According to TTO