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| Waste in Việt Yên Town, Bắc Giang Province. Photos Courtesy of Bắc Giang Province |
BẮC GIANG - Bắc Giang Province is focusing on improving waste collection and treatment to enhance environmental quality across its localities. According to Lê Ô Pích, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee, the province will implement robust measures to ensure a green, clean, and beautiful environment in the coming period.
Efforts will focus on intensifying public education campaigns, directly guiding residents in collecting, sorting, and disposing of waste in designated areas. Regular environmental clean-up campaigns will be maintained, encouraging citizens to adopt sustainable habits. The province is also mobilising active participation from political and social organisations, alongside broad community involvement, to support these efforts.
To ensure the effective operation of sanitation services, districts, towns, and cities will allocate sufficient funds for specialised waste management units. Investments will be made in acquiring dedicated waste transport vehicles, aiming to equip 100 per cent of inter-communal waste collection units by the end of 2025. Waste collection and transport routes will be designed to optimise travel distances and adapt to local traffic conditions.
Localities are also instructed to expand the scope of waste collection services, increase fee rates, and improve fee collection efficiency. These measures will ensure sufficient funding for effective operations of waste collection, transportation, and treatment units.
The province plans to upgrade and maintain existing waste treatment facilities to manage the increasing volume of waste effectively. Major objectives include upgrading the centralised waste treatment site in Việt Yên Town, enhancing the waste treatment facility in Bắc Giang City, and developing plans for a centralised waste treatment plant in Lan Mẫu Commune, Lục Nam District.
Departments, agencies, Bắc Giang City, and Hiệp Hòa District are also expediting legal procedures to commence construction of a new centralised waste treatment plant in 2024. Localities within the waste supply zone of the planned waste-to-energy plant in Bắc Giang City will review land use plans and prepare locations for waste transfer stations, ensuring seamless operations when the plant becomes operational.
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| Waste in Nếnh Town, Việt Yên Town, Bắc Giang Province. |
Currently, the province generates approximately 965.5 tonnes of waste daily. Since 2021, Bắc Giang has mobilised community efforts to focus on waste collection and treatment. Across the province, 171 sanitation companies, cooperatives, and units have been established to handle waste collection, transportation, and treatment in all communes, wards, and towns. Localities have also set up over 1,100 waste transfer points and 7,330 collection tanks for agricultural waste, such as fertiliser bags and pesticide containers, in gardens and fields.
Investments have been made in 12 waste compacting stations (with eight more under construction in Bắc Giang City), 28 compactor trucks, 77 vehicles, 175 custom-built vehicles, and 3,854 handcarts. These efforts have increased the province’s waste collection rate to 94.9 per cent, equivalent to 916.5 tonnes per day.
The province has established 72 waste treatment zones, including six regional facilities in key districts—such as Bắc Giang City and Việt Yên Town—and 66 smaller zones in communes and inter-communal clusters. A total of 76 advanced incinerators are also operational at these treatment sites.
Since 2021, the Fatherland Front Committee and various organisations in Bắc Giang have collaborated with local authorities to clear improperly disposed waste totalling 8,900 cubic metres, dredge 40 kilometres of irrigation canals, plant nearly 90,000 trees, and create over 100 recreational areas using recycled materials.
Initiatives such as “Plastic Waste Reduction Residential Zones” and “Markets Reducing Plastic Waste” have also been implemented, contributing to environmental sustainability.
To prevent pollution at landfill sites, Bắc Giang City approved two projects in July: the construction of a leachate treatment station with a capacity of 200 cubic metres per day and the installation of HDPE coverings over landfill areas at Đa Mai Landfill.
These projects, managed by the Bắc Giang City Investment Project Management Board, have a total budget of VNĐ13 billion and are currently in the contractor selection phase.
In the long term, the province is accelerating the construction of a waste-to-energy plant to address growing waste volumes and alleviate overloading at landfill sites, especially those using burial methods. This initiative aligns with Directive 17 issued by the Provincial Party Standing Committee.
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| A waste incinerator in Việt Yên Town, Bắc Giang Province. |
Nguyễn Ngọc Huy, Director of Asian Green Energy Environmental Company, said: “Our company is currently implementing a waste treatment programme for Yên Dũng District, Bắc Giang Province. The plant has a capacity of approximately 100 tonnes per day, sufficient to process all the waste generated in Yên Dũng District.”
Hoàng Hữu Lân, Deputy Head of the Natural Resources and Environment Department of Yên Dũng District, explained, “Based on evaluations of existing waste, the company has developed plans and installed a non-emission waste treatment system in the district, with an estimated processing capacity of 100 tonnes per day. According to expert assessments, the district’s waste backlog will be fully resolved within 4–5 months.”
Lê Hoàng Bách, Vice Chairman of Việt Yên Town, noted that as Việt Yên has been upgraded to a town, its management approach must also change.
"We plan to tender waste management services, assigning a single contractor to handle everything—from collecting waste on roads to clearing waste from lakes, washing streets, and removing waste from tree bases and poles," he said.
"Even the smallest tasks will be included in the contract to improve urban aesthetics and environmental quality. This effort is part of our goal for Việt Yên to achieve city status by 2030.” VNS
