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On Thursday dozens of officials from various departments joined officers to carry out raids at several places in the Bong Mieu mine.
They found and destroyed generators, tents, pipes, electric wires and other stuff used by the miners. But no one was held as they all managed to flee, according to an environmental police officer.
Late last month the Quang Nam Province People's Committee had called on the police and environment and agriculture authorities to crack down on illegal mining.
Police officers destroy several equipment belonging to illegal gold miners at the Bong Mieu mine in Quang Nam. Video courtesy of the police
Bong Mieu has been mined since the French colonialism era, and is among the most productive in Vietnam. In 2005 the Bong Mieu company was licensed to mine it, but the license expired in 2016.
Quang Nam has also urged the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment on several occasions to shut down the mine. The approval for the closure was given in March 2022, and the mine is expected to be closed by 2024.
Since the mine has not been properly managed for several years now, many people still go there looking for gold.
The illegal mining causes severe pollution.
