Greener approach to waste in Thua Thien Hue Communes

Did you know that in 2011, Vietnam produced over 28 million tons of waste per year, the majority of which came from municipal sources? Two communes of rural Huong Tra town, Thua Thien  Hue province, containing 12 villages, will be able to clear some of that waste after the implementation of a formal waste management proposal. On October 23, 2013, representatives from the communes, the people’s committees, local partners and SRD met to hand over a number of waste collecting means provided within the project “Community based disaster risk mitigation and climate change adaptation” funded by Australian aid and Caritas Australia.

“I would like to thank the project very much, with the waste collection cyclo, our jobs will be easier and more convenient. It will help keep our environment clean, improve our health and improve livelihoods in the community” shared a representative of the local waste collectors team."

Newly delivered waste collection cyclos

SRD presented two communes with 8 small waste bins on cyclos that will regularly circulate to pick up and dispose of local waste. The waste gathered in the small bins will then be disposed of in a larger receptacle that will regularly be emptied in cooperation with the officials of Hue city. The cyclos will be operated by local people, and the villagers will pay a small monthly fee of 12,000 dong to support the collectors team. 

The chair of the Commune People's Committee discusses the new approach

The two communes have tried to informally manage their own waste in the past, but often encountered difficulties in the safe disposal of the gathered waste. The communes, which border the waters of the lagoon and ocean, do not have spare land to dedicate to landfills or disposal. As a result, the garbage pits would develop or self-disposal techniques would be used. These methods of disposal can have consequences for ground water, air quality, and the spreading of disease. However, this new approach to rural waste management has been designed to address previous issues through a formalized waste management approach. 

Big waste container

With the willing collaboration between SRD, the Project Teams, and the People’s Committees, this new approach will hopefully be expanded into other communes in the area through a new waste management project proposal. A successful rural waste management approach will lead to a cleaner environment, will decrease pollution, will improve the health of local people and will also help to employ local people, thereby improving livelihoods.

Though the collection materials have been delivered, there is still more to come in the implementation of the program. Though collectors now have a formal system to collect waste, SRD will work with local partners and people to change behaviours around waste through participatory workshops. The upcoming workshops will deal with household approachs to managing waste, allowing people to share their own techniques and discussing best practices. Learn more about the implementation of our waste management project soon.

-SRD-