Green industrial parks and waste power plants need to be ‘brought closer to the urban area’

“On weekends, many people in Thuy Nguyen district (Hai Phong) go to Nam Cau Kien eco-industrial park to have fun and entertainment, not go to the city,” Dr. Nguyen Phuong Nam, international evaluator of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) shared at the conference “Net Zero – Environment & Energy – towards a zero-emission city”, afternoon 3 /12.

Nam Cau Kien is the first eco-industrial park in Vietnam built by Vietnamese people, creating a reverse trend by making this place worth living, drawing urban residents closer. In addition to 10 themed ecological gardens, this place also has a science center for employees and people from surrounding communes to rest, visit and experience.

“Hai Phong ranked our industrial park in the list of 19 tourist destinations for experience and community learning,” said Mr. Hoang Tuan Anh, General Director of Shinec Joint Stock Company – investor of Nam Cau Kien.

This area also forms a symbiotic chain in recycling and circulation of electronics, plastics and steel. This business’s waste is the input material of another unit in the chain, aiming to bring the industrial park to Net Zero (net zero emissions) by 2035.

“We have to abandon the idea that industrial parks are located outside the city. Why not place them in the city if it is an ecological and sustainable industrial park,” Dr. Nam asked the question.

Pulling the project closer to the urban area is also VSD Holdings’ desire for waste power plants, but there are still environmental prejudices.

Mr. Le Trong Linh, Project Director of VSD Holdings, said that many waste power plants in Japan or Europe are located near urban areas, reducing pressure on the collection stage, creating a close working environment for local workers. when you don’t have to move too far from your living area.

VSD Holdings is operating a waste power plant combined with collection in Bac Ninh, with a total investment of 74 million USD, with a waste treatment scale of 500 tons per day and night. This project has been operating since January, has a generating capacity of 11.6 MW, is funded to sell carbon credits and is expected to completely treat household waste in this province.

Regarding environmental concerns, Mr. Linh said that the factories themselves have environmental impact assessment reports, combined with community consultation, installation of cameras to monitor waste discharge, ensuring noise does not exceed 60 decibels. ..

Waste management and ensuring energy efficiency are two of many elements of a sustainable city, according to Dr. Nguyen Phuong Nam. This is also the potential area that Vinacapital fund is targeting, to sell carbon credits and plastic credits in the future.

A carbon credit is a tradable license or certificate that is valid for purchase and sale and gives the credit holder the right to emit one ton of CO2 or other emissions on the list of emissions. greenhouse waste.

According to statistics from Vinacapital, Hanoi has more than 8.5 million people, household solid waste is at 60,000 tons a day, 60% from urban areas. It is expected that this amount of waste will increase to 90,000 tons a day by 2030, when the capital’s population will increase to 11-12 million people. Currently 70% of solid waste is treated by landfilling.

“A smart city is only a place worth working in, not necessarily worth living in if it lacks sustainability”, Dr. Nam said. A sustainable city, in addition to waste management, energy efficiency and climate change, needs to preserve and restore historical elements, adapt and manage natural disaster risks. This place also needs green space, friendly urban traffic, low emissions…

According to experts from UNFCCC, Hanoi can learn many initiatives from cities around the world. For example, due to poor planning, every time it rains and floods, the city witnesses sandbags blocking the parking garage door to prevent water. Meanwhile, the subway in Washington (USA) or the children’s playground in Rotterdam (Netherlands) are all designed with flood drainage corridors. In the case of Rotterdam, the children’s playground area, when dry, will become a water collection place, thereby pumping water to the regulating lake, avoiding urban flooding.

“There are many initiatives but it is not enough without a synchronous and comprehensive solution for a city. Vietnam is lacking a general engineer with both environmental and construction expertise and industrial knowledge,” Mr. Nam speak.