Vietnam News 9 Sep 09;
CAN THO CITY — The Government has begun an investigation into reports that illegal sand mining and exports in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta have increased sharply in recent months.
Inspectors from the ministries of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) and Construction arrived on Monday to study the situation in delta rivers, especially the Hau, where sand mining has caused severe landslides.
Pham Ngoc Son, head of the MNRE’s Legal Department, said the inspection teams would look into exploitation, transport, consumption, and export of sand in Can Tho City and An Giang, Dong Thap, Vinh Long, Tra Vinh, Soc Trang, Ben Tre, Tien Giang, Hau Giang and Kien Giang provinces.
The inspection results would be sent to the Prime Minister by September 15, he added.
Speaking at a meeting with the inspection teams on Monday, Nguyen Thanh Son, deputy chairman of the Can Tho city People’s Committee, said the situation had become complicated in the last few months.
Local authorities were unable to check the illegal sand exploitation in many places, and this resulted in landslides and social security and transportation problems, he said.
To tackle the problem, Can Tho had stopped issuing fresh licences for mining sand and renewing old licences, he said.
Son also suggested that the Government consider putting a stop to export of sand from the Mekong Delta since overexploitation from rivers had caused severe landslides.
Can Tho alone reported exports of nearly 7 million tonnes in just the first eight months of the year, mostly to Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, compared to just 1.4 million tonnes during the whole of last year.
The sharp rise has been attributed to a ban on sand exports by the Cambodian Government last May to protect the environment.
The Government’s Instruction No29 issued last October banned sand exports under contracts signed after November 30. But for contracts signed before the date, there is no deadline for making the shipment.
With a two-month window available, exporters signed a rash of fresh deals involving huge quantities, said Nguyen Huu Co, head of the Can Tho Department of Customs.
Many also fraudulently advanced the dates on contracts signed after November 30, he said.
"The exporters have been free to violate regulations because of the fact there are no agencies to oversee the signing of these contracts," he added. — VNS
Delta sand exports inspected amid environmental warning
thanhniennews.com 10 Sep 09;
The government is inspecting sand exporters in the Mekong Delta after local media reports said booming exports of the material to Singapore were altering water flows and damaging the environment.
Nguyen Thanh Son, deputy chairman of Can Tho People’s Committee, said sand dredging in the city was out of control and had eroded local riverbanks.
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment launched its investigations Monday, aiming to root out any illegal sand dredgers and exporters.
The city’s Department of Natural Resources and Environment said it had halted the issuance of new licenses for sand dredging and the extension of issued licenses.
Pham Ngoc Son, a representative from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, said apart from Can Tho, inspectors from his ministry and the Ministry of Construction would soon investigate other Delta localities and submit their findings to PM Nguyen Tan Dung by this Tuesday.
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung asked the two ministries to inspect Delta sand exports late last month after local media said booming exports to Singapore were irreparably damaging the region’s landscape.
The volume of sand shipped from Can Tho to foreign countries in the first eight months of 2009 was nearly 7 million tons, compared to only 1.4 million tons in the whole 2008, said Nguyen Huu Co, head of the municipal Customs Agency in Can Tho.
On October 2, 2008, the government announced a temporary ban on the exports of sand. However, exports under contracts signed before November 30, 2008 were still allowed.
Thus, from October 2 to November 30 last year, many companies signed contracts to ship a large volume of sand abroad, while others have since forged their contract dates to escape the ban, said Co.
Illegalities
The Ministry of Security has also launched an inspection of sand exploited and exported from the Delta.
Initial results showed that several enterprises in Can Tho and the provinces of An Giang and Dong Thap had made forged documents to illegally export sand, Tuoi Tre newspaper said, citing an anonymous police source.
Inspectors said they had found irregularities in 1,000 customs declarations from seven enterprises exporting sand that had been approved by the Can Tho City’s Customs Department, including the use of modified photocopies of contracts or those without the signatures of exporters.
Other irregularities included delivery dates preceding contract dates or delivery dates following contract expiration dates.
Source: Tuoi Tre
