The most read Vietnamese newspaper
Edition: International | Vietnamese
© Copyright 1997 VnExpress.net. All rights reserved.
The Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV), the investor of Long Thanh International Airport, said Wednesday that the dust outbreak coming from the project in recent days is because contractors were accelerating the progress to build terminals and runways over a large-scale construction site of more than 2,500 hectares.
The south of Vietnam is at the peak of the dry season, during which there are strong winds that can easily carry the dust over long distances, it said.
In recent days, dust from Long Thanh airport has spread to residential areas and even the nearby Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay Expressway, affecting visibility for motorists.
The same problem was recorded last year, when dust pollution affected daily activities at a local school and residents' homes.
The authorities of Dong Nai Province and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment have requested ACV, a 95% state-owned joint-stock company, to come up with solutions to limit dust dispersion outside the site.
In an official dispatch sent to the consortium of construction contractors and the supervisory consultant on Wednesday, the ACV demanded better management of vehicle and equipment movement in the construction site, and the maintenance of water sprinkling for dust suppression on roads within the project.
In many cases, vehicles on the construction site have skipped the asphalt-coated road and instead move straight onto the soil, spreading dust further.
To address the dust issue, the environmental health and safety team of the investor and the construction contractor consortium have deployed 35 water tank trucks to regularly water the site five times a day, ACV said.
For surfaces that have been leveled according to the design elevation, ACV has asked the construction units to immediately start planting grass to hold the soil and reduce dust in the area.
The Long Thanh International Airport project, spanning 5,000 hectares, has a total estimated investment of about VND337 trillion.
Set to be completed next year, the airport’s first phase is being built with one runway, a terminal, and several ancillary facilities, aiming for a capacity of 25 million passengers per year.
Dust pollution from Long Thanh airport construction site sabotages residents' life in Dong Nai Province, March 2023. Video by VnExpress/Vu Thinh, Phuoc Tuan
