In a recent interview with Tuoi Tre Ho Chi Minh City newspaper on the serious air pollution situation in Hanoi and its impacts on public health, National Assembly Delegate and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Halcom Vietnam Nguyen Quang Huan pointed out the underlying causes and proposed solutions to address the issue.
According to Mr. Huan, relevant authorities currently lack real-time data to accurately identify the sources of pollution, such as transportation, construction activities, craft villages, industrial production, and straw burning. This makes the process of developing scientific and effective solutions more challenging, as the proposed measures may lack a clear and accurate foundation.
Although the 2020 Law on Environmental Protection requires emissions monitoring from major pollution sources, most areas have yet to fully implement this requirement due to malfunctioning monitoring stations or monitoring activities being conducted merely for formal compliance. The delegate also emphasized that commune-level authorities need to shift their mindset from “management” to “governance”, truly placing citizens at the center of efforts to address environmental issues.
In addition, the lack of emission inventories and forecasting models is hindering the process of developing a national emissions reduction roadmap. Although Vietnam has committed to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, the absence of specific and reliable data makes this target more challenging to realize. Therefore, it is essential to quickly establish an emission profile and comprehensive data system as a foundation for developing effective solutions. Mr. Nguyen Quang Huan emphasized that without transparent models and data, policies will remain generalized, difficult to implement, and lack broad social consensus.
For more details, please read the full article on Tuoi Tre Online.