A section of La Nga River (for illustration only). (Photo: Internet)

Residents in La Nga Commune, Dinh Quan District, Dong Nai Province have requested the local authority to shut down yeast producer AB Mauri Vietnam Co Ltd if it continues to cause pollution problems. |

They made the demand at a meeting yesterday held by the district People’s Committee and the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment to address pollution problems caused by the company.

The department said at the meeting that it had fined the company VND70 million (US$3,330) for discharging semi-treated wastewater and exhaust fume which affected local resident’s crops and fishing.

The company must take measures to stop the pollution before November 25 or it will be suspended, the department said.

Local authorities said the company had broken its promise in 2009 to comply with environmental regulations but many residents complained that the authorities had failed to handle the company’s polluting activities properly.

The authorities should not allow the company to continue its operation before it resolves the consequences it has caused, locals said.

They said if the company fails to improve the situation and does not compensate local residents for the damage to their crops and fishing, it must be shut down permanently.

On October 30, 2011, some 100 angry residents gathered outside the company to complain about its discharge of poorly-treated wastewater and exhaust fumes.

It was their second such protest against the company. In July 2009 the people had agitated after the company released wastewater into the Tri An reservoir and caused such severe pollution that the provincial authorities closed it down for three months.

The company had then promised to cease operations if the pollution continued, but locals said the company did nothing to stop the pollution to the La Nga River, severely affecting their fishing activities.

Water from the river had a much higher content of iron than is allowed, and water samples taken from many wells in the area all failed to meet the country’s safety standards, the provincial Preventive Health Center reported.

Two of the samples even contained arsenic, a carcinogen, it said.

(VietNamNet Bridge)