Handling hydropower plants that 'run red lights': 'Decision is on the Deputy Minister's desk'

According to the leader of the Department of Environmental Impact Assessment and Appraisal - Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the construction of some small hydropower projects "running the red light" without an Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIA) such as Song Lo 2 Hydropower Plant in Ha Giang Province, or Suoi Mu Hydropower Plant in Hoa Binh is illegal.

So how will these illegal hydropower projects be handled? In this case, were the investors hasty in implementing the project, or were they deliberately circumventing the law? Is this a way for businesses to “make things difficult” for local authorities, to let go of “things that have already happened?”

Song Lo 2 Hydropower Project in Ha Giang province. (Photo: HC/Vietnam+)

Construction "running red lights"

As VietnamPlus has reported, recently, the situation of small hydropower enterprises "avoiding" the EIA - a mandatory regulation and one of the deciding factors in whether a project can be implemented or not - is quite common, and the reason is due to policy documents and implementation.

For example, the Song Lo 2 Hydropower Project, invested by Thanh Binh Limited Company, has been under construction since 2015 in Vi Xuyen District, Ha Giang Province. However, the adjusted project, which is subject to re-establishing the EIA (due to increasing the installed capacity from 21MW to 28MW and adjusting some items), has not yet been approved by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

Recognizing the above situation, Mr. Pham Anh Dung, Deputy Director of the Department of Environmental Impact Assessment and Appraisal, said: After receiving the information, on June 23, 2017, the Department of Environmental Impact Assessment and Appraisal established a Council to inspect and appraise and requested the Song Lo 2 Hydropower Project to temporarily suspend construction according to regulations.

“The reason for the stop is that the Song Lo 2 hydropower project has implemented a number of items such as the left bank embankment and the right bank embankment, which are not included in the EIA, which is wrong. Or more accurately, the project has been constructed 'running the red light', violating the 2014 Law on Environmental Protection. In this case, the investor may have unintentionally violated, or it may have intentionally violated. Therefore, we have requested the investor to immediately stop all construction activities of the project and implement environmental protection measures,” said Mr. Dung.

Regarding the direction of punishment, Mr. Dung said: “After conducting the inspection at the end of June, we submitted it to the Deputy Minister for consideration. Currently, the document is on the Deputy Minister's desk and cannot be withdrawn. In this matter, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment is responsible for issuing the document, but the authority to handle it lies with the Provincial People's Committee.”

Similarly, the Suoi Mu hydropower project invested by Van Hong Company in Lac Son district was permitted by the People's Committee of Hoa Binh province to start construction in early 2016, without the need to prepare an EIA. After more than half a year, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Hoa Binh province confirmed that "Van Hong Limited Liability Company has registered an environmental protection plan for the Suoi Mu Hydropower Plant."

According to the explanation of the representative of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Hoa Binh province, this Department signed the Certificate of registration of environmental protection plan for Van Hong Limited Liability Company because Suoi Mu Hydropower Plant has a capacity of 9 MW, so it only needs to "register the plan." So, is there anything "unusual" about the fact that this project was implemented after more than half a year of construction before receiving the Certificate of registration of environmental protection plan?

Talking to VietnamPlus reporters about the above incident, Dr. Hoang Hai - Head of the EIA Department, Department of Environmental Assessment and Appraisal said: "In fact, when checking, if it is discovered that the project is not subject to EIA but does not have a Certificate of Registration, it must be stopped and construction will only be allowed when it is supplemented."

Regarding the authority to appraise and approve EIA, according to Mr. Hai, there are two cases under the authority of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. One is that it must be an EIA subject, the other is from a project with a capacity of 2MW or more (according to Decree 201/2013/ND-CP) and some other regulations. “In the case of Suoi Mu Hydropower Plant, we received a document that Hoa Binh explained, but we do not know if it is true in reality,” Mr. Hai said.

Suoi Mu Hydropower Project is built in Thac Mu area, Lac Son district, Hoa Binh province. (Photo: HV/Vietnam+)

"The decision is up to the Deputy Minister"

So, how should the Suoi Mu hydropower plant's "red light" construction be handled? Mr. Hai said: "This question is difficult for me, I can only advise on everything, the decision is up to the Deputy Minister (because the document sent by Hoa Binh province to the Ministry has been submitted to Deputy Minister Vo Tuan Nhan for consideration), my proposal is not very appropriate. However, in my opinion, even though the incident has already happened, the locality should still remind the enterprise, or impose a fine according to regulation 155 on administrative penalties."

Regarding the information that localities reflect the overlap and lack of clarity between the provisions guiding the procedures for preparing EIAs for small hydropower projects, the Head of the EIA Division - Department of Environmental Assessment and Appraisal said: Some localities do not pay attention and make mistakes. There are many regulations, if one "slips through", there will be something to talk about.

“In this matter, the local authorities may have made a mistake. I know about the overlap, because many people skim through it and do not understand it clearly. According to the instructions, the Decree will be amended soon, but in fact, we are about to ask for opinions on the website. We have also met many times to ask for opinions, but it must be amended along with many other Decrees,” said Mr. Hai.

Mr. Hai also noted that the Government will decide on amending the Decree. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has proposed and advised on amending the Decrees on environmental protection laws, including Decree 18, because some unclear points were discovered during the implementation process.

“Currently, the Deputy Minister (Deputy Minister Vo Tuan Nhan) is directing, but whether it is completed or not will have to go through many levels,” Mr. Hai affirmed that the Department of Environmental Impact Assessment and Appraisal has also submitted many options, but in essence it is to explain clearly.

“Regarding the guiding document No. 5657/BTNMT-TCMT (signed by Deputy Minister Vo Tuan Nhan) sent to the provinces, clearly stating the authority to appraise and approve EIAs of hydropower projects, the Deputy Minister also requested a clearer explanation. Whoever asks, whoever says, must explain, but I do not know whether the Ministry will explain or not,” Mr. Hai added.

Previously, sharing with VietnamPlus reporters on July 10, a source from the Department of Environmental Impact Assessment and Appraisal revealed that after gathering opinions from localities, leaders of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment directed the correction of the guiding document No. 5657/BTNMT-TCMT, the root cause being that the content of the document was unclear, leading to misunderstandings at the local level.

From an expert perspective, Dr. Nguyen Khac Kinh, former Director of the Department of Environmental Impact Assessment - General Department of Environment, currently Chairman of the Vietnam Environmental Impact Assessment Association, said: To facilitate environmental assessment and treatment, ensuring sustainable environmental development, competent State agencies need to adjust documents and unify regulations between the Decree and the guiding Circular as soon as possible.

At the same time, there are additional instructions on how to handle projects that are under construction or have started construction (when there is no circular yet). The "loophole" should not be allowed to persist, which could lead to a chain reaction of similar projects, making it difficult to appraise and handle hydropower projects that "evade" EIA.

According to Vietnamplus