Environment and natural resources
Capital still struggling with waste
Phnom Penh deputy governor Ieng Aunny on March 28 acknowledged that the capital continues to struggle with waste management despite recent decentralisation measures, laying the blame with districts’ and communes’ lack of awareness of their new responsibilities, as well as what he characterised as contractor ...
Exports of logs double in 2016
Despite a ban on the export of timber to Vietnam and the creation of a much-publicised anti-logging task force, Cambodia last year still exported nearly $33 million dollars’ worth of unprocessed logs to its eastern neighbour, a volume more than double that of 2015, according ...
Illegal logging groups arrested
Eleven Vietnamese men and two Cambodian men have been arrested for border crossing offenses and logging in protected forests. Interior Ministry immigration police officer Bun Chantha said the Cambodians and seven of the Vietnamese were arrested in Rattanakiri province’s Lumphat district on March 27. The provincial ...
Thanh Hoa factory fined for polluted discharge
A tapioca starch production plant in central Thanh Hoa Province has been fined VND310 million (US$13,710) for polluting the environment. The Ba Thuoc plant, located in Ba Thuoc District’s Thiet Ong Commune, was found to be discharging wastewater into Ma River with pollutants exceeding the ...
Mass shrimp deaths in Tra Vinh
Changeable weather and careless farming in Tra Vinh Province has caused pollution and killed a large number of shrimp in the area. As of March, Tra Vinh had over 7,000 households raising nearly 600 million black tiger shrimp and 2,240 households raising 524 million white leg ...
Forestry agreement inked as Laos, China pursue sustainable resource development
Bilateral cooperation for sustainable and forestry industry development is set to expand following the signing of an agreement between the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Laos and State Forestry Administration of China. Cooperation is set to cover seven main areas such as afforestation, forest ...
Villagers urged to swap fishing for ecotourism
The Tourism Minister has called on riverside communities in Kratie and Stung Treng provinces to avoid fishing in areas where dolphins live to attract visitors who want to see the rare creatures. Thong Khon’s call came as the government prepared to open the third annual River ...
Floating villages to be relocated
Kampong Chhnang provincial authorities have outlined plans to relocate thousands of families living on the Tonle Sap river in an effort to curb water pollution. Provincial governor Chhour Chan Dern said five floating villages in three different locations along a stretch of the river in his ...
Transparency lacking in mining sector: Experts
The Vietnamese legal framework and policies regarding transparency in the mining sector is “fairly comprehensive”, however, implementation of such policies leaves a lot to be desired, according to a study by the Việt Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The research on transparency compliance lamented ...
Will the environment be the Vietnam government’s downfall?
For years, Tran Thi Nga was subjected to harassment and brutalization by the Vietnamese authorities, the details of which emerged in a fresh Human Rights Watch report published earlier this year. She was finally arrested in January for using the using “the Internet to post ...