Hanoi to begin sorting trash in June

The five downtown districts of Ba Dinh, Hoan Kiem, Hai Ba Trung, Dong Da and Nam Tu Liem will begin sorting trash as a trial, according to the Hanoi Urban Environment Company (URENCO).

Except for Hoan Kiem District, which will begin trash sorting in all wards, the other districts will choose certain wards in which to launch the pilot program.

The first phase of the trial will be carried out through the first quarter of 2025.

Afterwards, districts will study the results of the trial project and make adjustments before launching the second phase through the rest of 2025. The results of this pilot period will then be the basis for a citywide trash sorting program in 2026.

In Hai Ba Trung's Pham Dinh Ho Ward, the trash will be sorted into four categories: recyclable waste, cumbersome waste, hazardous waste, and others (including food waste).

For recyclable waste from households and small-scale businesses – such as paper, plastic cups and bottles – ward authorities will arrange specific locations for waste to be collected twice a week.

For cumbersome waste, such as furniture, the ward will arrange one location for collection every Saturday between 7-11 a.m. Houses with large amounts of such trash can contact specific hotlines for waste collection.

For hazardous waste, such as batteries, light bulbs and oil, the ward will also collect them at one specific location and not allow them to be mixed with other types of waste.

Localities must sort all waste by Dec. 31 at the latest, in accordance with the 2020 Law on Environment Protection. Environmental workers will decline to collect unsorted trash. Households who do not sort trash or contain solid waste in specific containers will be fined up to VND1 million ($39.27).

Hanoi produces around 7,000 tons of domestic waste every day, second in Vietnam only to Ho Chi Minh City. Starting in 2005, certain wards in the city had launched trial programs to sort trash, but they could not be maintained as they had yet to be compatible with the existing trash collection infrastructure and policies.