Vietnam authorizes inspection of bauxite projects

Hanoi - The Vietnamese government will send officials to inspect controversial bauxite projects in the Central Highlands from May 7. The information gathered will be reported at the next meeting of the legislative National Assembly (NA), which opens May 20, a government official said Monday. 'This inspection will focus on assessing the environmental impact so as to then work out what measures should be taken to continue it,' said Nguyen Xuan Cuong, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment. Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung's last week ordered a complete review of bauxite mining and smelting projects in the Central Highlands. The Communist Party Politburo had called for a review of all such projects on April 16 statement. Cuong said his ministry had approved the report made by the investor, the state-owned Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Group (VINACOMIN), but now needs an inspection to make sure the factory, which will be put into operation by the end of 2010, will not cause damage to the environment. 'We will inspect things and report back in an objective manner. We are not under any pressure from the government, or anyone else, to distort the report.' However, some are sceptical of the proposed inspection. 'In other countries, NGOs (non-governmental organizations) are assigned to perform these inspections, as results will be more objective,' said Dang Hung Vo, the former director of the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment. Vo said he did not support the bauxite projects as plans had not been considered carefully. 'In a country which has a long-term vision, people will conserve natural resources for future generations,' he said. Critics say that geological factors make it hard to contain waste in the Central Highlands, and worry that pollution will affect the coffee and cacao plants, as well as damage wildlife and the social fabric of indigenous ethnic minorities. Vietnam is the second-largest exporter of coffee in the world, after Brazil. Even war hero General Vo Nguyen Giap, who defeated the French and the Americans, penned an article condemning the project, which was published in state media in January. Criticism became even stronger after local media reported that hundreds of unskilled Chinese labourers, used by the Chinese mining company Chalco, were working on construction sites in bauxite projects. In response to public anger, the Politburo has asked VINACOMIN to employ local workers only.