Vietnam orders closure of factory for discharging wastewater into river

A Taiwanese-owned factory in Vietnam has been ordered by authorities to close down as well as being fined after it was found emptying untreated wastewater into a river, reports state.

Government authorities have ordered the plant to close until it installs an efficient wastewater treatment system, reported The Earth Times.

Vedan (Vietnam) Enterprise Corp was also ordered to pay a fine of $7.7 million (£4.5 million) due to its continued ten-year breaching of Vietnamese wastewater regulations and fee evasion, officials stated.

"We have decided to punish Vedan. The firm has repeatedly violated environmental regulations by dumping untreated wastewater into the Thi Vai River since 1994," explained Tran Hong Ha, deputy minister of natural resources and environment.

Authorities claim Vedan has discharged a total of 45,000 cubic metres of wastewater over the last ten years.

Vedan was founded in 1991 and the plant in question is located about 70 kilometres from Vietnam's biggest city, Ho Chi Minh.