Business associations have voiced their support for stricter management of scrap imports. (Photo: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – Business associationshave voiced their support for stricter management of scrap imports, but theyalso underlined the need to continue importing these goods to serve domesticproduction.
The Ministry of Natural Resources andEnvironment (MoNRE) hosted a meeting in Hanoi on July 24 to look into the scrapimport situation.
Deputy Director General of the VietnamEnvironment Administration Hoang Van Thuc said scrap imports into Vietnamincreased sharply in the first few months of 2018 and are forecast to continuerising for the time ahead. The congestion of imported scrap materials atseaports is currently a great public concern as it has affected the operation capacityof ports and shipping companies, slowing down their flow of goods, he added.
A large volume of scrap imports are currentlystuck at ports in Ho Chi Minh City. As of June 26, up to 4,480 containers ofscrap materials had been stuck at the ports under the Saigon NewportCorporation’s management for at least 30 days. Up to 3,464 of the containersare at Cat Lai Port.
Meanwhile, 737 containers have been stored formore than 90 days and 507 others have stayed for between 30 and 90 days atports in northern Hai Phong city.
About 20 percent of the imported scrap is paper,and the rest is plastic and other types of scrap materials, according to theMoNRE.
Minister Tran Hong Ha said it is necessary to overhaullegal documents on scrap imports in line with the laws on environmentalprotection, trade and customs, and the maritime code. In particular, specificmechanisms need to be created to manage and control scrap trading activitiesbefore scrap enters Vietnam, he said, adding that technical standards shouldalso be tightened to ensure that imported scraps are clean.
He urged stricter control on temporary importsof scrap for re-export out of Vietnam.
The MoNRE is also asking Prime Minister NguyenXuan Phuc to permit the removal of scrap types which either may pollute theenvironment or can be supplied locally from approved import lists.
Supporting the stricter management of scrapimports, business associations said it will also help improve enterprises’awareness of using clean materials.
Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Steel AssociationNguyen Van Sua said banning the import of unqualified scrap or scrap that canbe sourced domestically or is not in demand is an appropriate action. However,take Vietnam’s steel industry for example, it is growing strongly and yet thedomestic supply of ore, bituminous coal, and scrap metal is not enough to meetits needs, and so these materials still need to be imported, he said.
A representative of the Vietnam Pulp and PaperAssociation said although there are only two pulp factories in the country atpresent, the industry produces up to 3.6 million tonnes of paper. Theassociation suggested authorised agencies license the import of scrap paperbasing on production demand.
Meanwhile, Secretary General of the VietnamPlastics Association Huynh Thi My said the industry has demand for about 5million tonnes of plastic materials each year, but only 20 percent of that issupplied domestically.
Therefore, plastics companies still need to import scrapplastics to serve production. To minimise environmental pollution, the sectorwill set up an industrial park using modern technologies to collect and recycleplastics, she added.–VNA
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