Minister of National Defense Ngo Xuan Lich has urged agencies to seek local and foreign resources in capital and technologies to implement the first phase of a U.S.-funded project to resolve dioxin contamination at Bien Hoa airbase in Dong Nai Province, which is expected to begin in April. Lich was speaking yesterday during a working session with the Project Management Unit on environmental remediation of dioxin contamination at Bien Hoa airport. Agencies have been asked to continue to implement measures to resolve the consequences of chemical toxins used by the U.S. during the war. In 2015, some 515,000 cubic meters of soil on 52ha of land at Bien Hoa airport contaminated by dioxin needed to be treated, according to the Ministry of Defense. The three most polluted spots in the airbase include the southwestern area with 8ha polluted by dioxin, which is 92 times higher than the permitted standard for commercial and public land. About 15ha of the western part of the airport is polluted by dioxin, which is 9.5 times higher than permitted standards. Some 12ha of the southern area of the airport is polluted by dioxin, which is 700 times higher than the permitted standards for commercial and industrial land. From 1995 to 2016, the High Command of Chemicals worked with agencies to implement an XD-1 project to clean up 100,000 cubic meters on an area of 4.3ha of dioxin-contaminated soil. In 2016, the Command completed the XD-2 to clean up 60,000 cubic meters of dioxin-contaminated soil in the southern area of the airport. In 2012, the Office of the Steering Committee 33, a national committee established to deal with toxic chemicals used by the US in the war in Vietnam, also completed a project to clean up 70,000 cubic meters of dioxin on an area of more than 5ha in the western part of the airport. The project was funded by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and Global Environment Fund. In 2017 the Ministry of Defense implemented a project to clean up dioxin at Bien Hoa airport, worth VND270 billion, which was sourced from the State budget. In addition, USAID and the Air Defense-Air Force Service under the Defense Ministry on May 11 last year signed an agreement on non-refundable aid to clean dioxin-contaminated soil at Bien Hoa Airport. The first phase of the dioxin cleanup project, which is expected to begin in April, will help reduce the risk of dioxin exposure for people living in this area. The project costs $390 million, of which $183 million is being sourced from the US Government and the rest from reciprocal capital from Vietnam. It is expected to be completed in 10 years. According to Lich only a small part of the huge volume of contaminated soil has been treated, while the policies to provide medical support for victims of toxic chemicals are still limited. Located about 30 kilometers from HCM City, Bien Hoa, a major base for U.S. Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine units during the war, is the largest remaining dioxin hotspot in Vietnam. Vietnam launched a VND270 billion ($11.8 million) program to facilitate a massive dioxin cleanup campaign at the airport in September 2016. The U.S. then announced its commitment to dioxin remediation efforts in the area in anticipation of U.S. President Donald Trump’s state visit to Vietnam last November. Dioxin, a highly toxic chemical contained in the defoliant, stays in the soil and at the bottom of lakes and rivers for generations. It can enter the food chain through meat, fish and other animals, and has been found at alarmingly high levels in human breast milk. The chemicals have been linked to cancer, birth defects and other chronic diseases, according to Vietnam Red Cross. The US has cooperated with Vietnam in solving humanitarian issues and war legacies since 2000, including removing unexploded materials, identifying remains of missing soldiers and implementing the environmental remediation of dioxin contamination. (Vietnam News Feb 16)
