Documents Awareness - Knowledge
logo
ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS

Coal power plants could endanger marine protection areas

06 March 2017 | 02:24:00 PM

Environmentalists have urged authorities to ‘learn lessons from the Formosa incident and reconsider proposed coal thermal power projects in Vinh Tan’.


 

 
According to Nguyen Chu Hoi from the Hanoi National University, Vietnam has 16 marine protection areas (MPAs), including Hon Cau, which, if well developed, will bring ‘spillover effects’, helping the biological balance in localities.
 
Strongly opposing the idea of narrowing Hon Cau to make room for thermal power plants, Hoi cited a speech by Vietnamese Deputy Chair of National Assembly Tong Thi Phong in Washington which emphasizes that the ocean plays a critical role in human life and that Vietnam is a maritime nation.
 
Hoi said that those who want to narrow Hon Cau must prove that waters cannot be protected, and Hon Cau is not the core position of the MPA. 
 
Sharing the same view, Vo Si Tuan from the Oceanography Institute, an arm of the Vietnam Academy of Science & Technology, cited a UNEP report saying that every square kilometer of coral reef can bring $600,000 in benefits from tourism alone each year. 
 
Meanwhile, it will be costly to recover damaged coral reefs. Maldives, for example, had to spend $10 million for every kilometer of coastline to replace damaged coral reefs.
 
However, despite the warnings, investors still attempt to develop a series of coal power plants near Hon Cau. At present, there is one plant operational – Vinh Tan 1. However, there would be four plants in the area by 2030 as planned by the national strategy on power development. 
 
Hon Cau is believed to be among the MPAs with most diversified ecosystem in Vietnam with hundreds of coral reefs, 119 mollusks and 32 types of echinoderms species. 
 
But it is being endangered by the activities of dredging passage at Vinh Tan 1 Port and sinking dredged waste, by suspended substances, sludge and sand, and by hydropower plants' cooling systems.
 
Tuan from the Oceanography Institute said his institute has finished the relocation of 10,000 clusters of coral reefs from coastal areas to other marine areas for dredging in preparation for the construction of Vinh Tan power plant in Tuy Phong district in Binh Thuan province. 
 
It took six months to implement the relocation. The clusters of coral reefs have been carried to an area 5 kilometers away where they continue to expand.
 
However, an expert on marine life conservation said the coral relocation may bhave negative consequences to the marine environment, as it may affect the reproductive capacity of many fish species in the area.

(VNA)

Views: 2440

Other news

Thanh Hoa residents fear losing farmland to riverbank erosion

(29/06/2025 07:56:AM )

Vietnam cuts smoking rate thanks to strong political commitment

(26/06/2025 06:53:AM )

Hanoi pioneers modern environmental sanitation technology

(22/06/2025 06:52:AM )

Hoi An develops creative youth spaces for sustainable urban future.

(20/06/2025 06:47:AM )

Vietnam launches first-ever cruise tour for travelers from Phu My Port

(14/06/2025 08:00:AM )

Climate change heightens risk of Indian farmer suicides

(10/06/2025 08:14:AM )

Tens of thousands of supplement boxes dumped in HCM City

(07/06/2025 08:32:AM )

Northern region faces new widespread heatwave spell

(06/06/2025 07:00:AM )

Hanoi struggles with scorching heat

(03/06/2025 06:58:AM )

VIDEO

Environmental Sustainability - we have choices

See more

ENVIRONMENT BRAND

UPCOMING EVENTS
The project that won the First Prize in the...

(VACNE, 17/6/2025) - The topic: “Artificial Wood Production from Straw” by the group of contestants Straw Wood, from Tra Vinh University, has just won the championship of the GVB Prize Startup Competition 2025 in London (United Kingdom) on June 15, 2025.

See more
The first Green Cypress to be recognized...

(VACNE) – These are 2 green cypress trees more than 300 years old with chemical name Calocedrus macrolepis Kurz solemnly held by Ba Vi National Park Management Board to announce the decision of Vietnam Heritage Tree on the morning of February 27, 2024.

See more
Some pictures of the ceremony to recognize...

(VACNE) – N(VACNE) – Authorities, mass organizations and local communities solemnly received the Certificate of Recognition of Vietnamese Heritage Trees for two majestic Sanh trees (nearly 30 meters high, more than 200 years old) in Trieu Phu communal house, in zone 7, Hung Son town, Lam Thao district, Phu Tho province on April 22, 2023 on the occasion of Hung King's death anniversary.

See more
Media contributes to the success of the international...

(VACNE) - On March 21, 2022, the Organizing Committee of the International workshop "The Effects of Environmental Pollution on Biodiversity and Human Health" had a meeting, chaired by Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Sinh - VACNE President

See more
ADB finances climate resilience infrastructure...

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $60 million financing package to improve the climate resilience of transport and water supply infrastructure in Vietnam’s south-central coastal provinces of Binh Dinh and Quang Nam, especially in remote upland districts with large ethnic minority communities.

See more
PHOTO GALLERY