The waste treatment plant in An Hiep Commune, spanning 5 ha, lies near a shrimp pond area and the Ham Luong River. The facility began operating 10 years ago, receiving around 30-40 tons of trash a day.
Only some of the trash is covered with sheets, the rest has been left in the open air.
Over the last two years, after the Ben Tre waste treatment plant in Chau Thanh District closed down, the plant at An Hiep has had to receive additional garbage coming from Ben Tre City and Chau Thanh, amounting to 120-150 tons a day. The sheer amount of trash has overwhelmed the plant's capacity. And combined with the fact that the plant's leachate treatment system has yet to be completed, stenches emanating from untreated waste at the facility have affected the lives of over 100 families in An Hiep and An Duc communes.
Two pumps drain wastewater from a pond on August 1. Once the water is pumped into the plant it is then pumped out again untreated due to the facility’s lack of capacity. The polluted water is released into a stream on the other side of the plant.
At around 7:30 p.m. on August 1, dozens of people gathered around the facility after finding out that wastewater was running out into their water sources. They called authorities, and police and militia forces of An Hiep Commune came and recorded videos of the wastewater leakage.
Around 500 m from the location, 30 people gather in An Duc to block trucks from entering the plant. The posted banners outside saying "Protect the environment and the people's health."
Ever since the booth was erected two weeks ago, garbage trucks have not been able to enter the facility.
Dozens of women and their children stay at the site to provide food and drink. They go home at night and return in the morning to change shifts with the overnight men.
At night, there only 4-5 people sleep at the protest booth. They return home at around 5 a.m.
"Normally we sleep in the hammocks until the morning, but there are nights when there are too many mosquitos, so we have to light repellent incenses to sleep," said Bui Vu Hoai, 34.
At around 7 a.m., Truong Thi Dua, 49, had used up three sheets of fly-catching papers. Her house is around 300 m away from the landfill. She said she and her husband have been eating inside for years because they fear contamination if they bring their food outside.
"Every day we use around 10 sheets of fly-catching paper, but the situation does not improve," she said.
Around 100 m from the facility is the abandoned house of Huynh Van Khanh, 39. Khanh said there are small children in his family, so they had to move away and stay at his wife's house around 5 km away, fearing the stench would affect the children's health.
Several families who raise shrimps said a shrimp pond spanning 1,000 m2 usually costs an initial investment of VND100 million ($4,213). But owners of the ponds have lost that money for good as most of the ponds have been abandoned due to worries over the wastewater.
About 40 km away, the Ben Tre waste treatment plant has been closed down for failing to meet safety standards. For over half a month, the site has become a temporary trash collection point due to the sheer amount of garbage in need of disposal in the area.
A representative of the Ben Tre People's Committee said on July 17 that insufficient management has made pollution at the facility affect the people. The Committee said that within a month, sheets would be used to cover the trash and chemicals would be sprayed to get rid of the smell. However, the people said their wish was for the facility to be moved elsewhere so they can return to their normal life.
