(VEN) - Ben Tre is one of the five provinces that have been chosen by the Cleaner Production in Industry Component (CPI) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade to get involved in a project under which selected businesses in the province will be supported to realize the cleaner production target. After two years, businesses' awareness has improved significantly and inspection of adherence to environmental standards fostered. Vietnam Economic News' Thu Huong spoke with deputy director of Ben Tre Department of Industry and Trade Tran Van Dau about the cleaner production practice in the province.
 Could you report on the project progress thus far?Ben Tre took part in the CPI Component in 2008 and three local businesses were chosen to experiment with the cleaner production approach. Two businesses will soon complete the second phase and are about to finalize payment procedures to terminate the project. They are the Lam Dong Private Enterprise and the Thanh Vinh Coconut Processing Plant. The third business, the Ben Tre Tobacco Company Limited, is in the second phase (more than 80 percent of the work volume is done) and is going to strike the balance-sheet in early 2010.
In 2009, the CPI Component surveyed and selected three above businesses to join the component activities. Consulting businesses are making assessments about cleaner production in these three companies. Through survey results, the cleaner production teams and consulting businesses have presented several investment solutions at a low cost that these three companies could apply immediately and several more costly solutions requiring financial support from the CPI Component.
What implications has the project brought to the province?
Since the province was selected to join the CPI Component activities, businesses in the province have reported encouraging results in cleaner production. The concept of cleaner production has been known to businesses and state organizations through symposia, leaflets, press articles and television broadcasting programs. In the meantime, via propagation programs and cleaner production demonstration projects in the province, businesses get to know the practical interests that are resulted from cleaner production. Cleaner production helps companies raise operational efficiency while effectively protecting the environment. Besides, the Cleaner Production Office was set up and became operational right at Ben Tre Center for Industry Promotion and Consultation Development (under the Ministry of Industry and Trade). Its core function is to support the provincial businesses in cleaner production.
What are advantages and disadvantages the province faces in getting involved in the CPI Component activities?
The province's management and the Department of Industry and Trade know the importance of the project in the province and then give the green light for the project's implementation through the Cleaner Production Office and relevant businesses. Besides, business leaders also recognize the practical effects the project could bring to their companies. Businesses getting involved in the project have established specialized cleaner production teams whose members work in different areas and hold concrete tasks to ensure smooth implementation of the project. However, we face several difficulties while implementing the CPI project. In 2008 when the province got involved in the project the local economy showed signs of recession due to implications of the global crisis. So that it was difficult to raise investment capital. In addition, several businesses hesitated in making changes, so they were cautious in implementing the cleaner production project.
What are the province's future development targets in cleaner production, especially when the Government has adopted the National Cleaner Production Strategy?
After the Government adopted the National Cleaner Production Strategy, Ben Tre Province People's Committee has approved the province's cleaner production action plan from 2009-2013 with support from the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Accordingly, by 2013 about 60 percent of industrial production facilities in the province will be supported in cleaner production. Particularly, also by 2013 efforts will be made to save 10 percent of input materials (energy, water, materials), reduce 15 percent of total gas emissions per product and 20 percent of solid wastes in some industrial fields, coconut and seafood processing industries, and in industrial parks and craft villages. Simultaneously, 60 percent of businesses and management bodies will receive training to improve capacity about cleaner production.
Besides, to reduce environmental pollution from industrial activities, efforts will be made to complete relevant legal documents on cleaner production and environmental protection to drive the move in the province; establish and operate a specialized body that is part of the center for industry promotion to support small and medium size businesses in realizing the cleaner production target; keep an eye on the adherence to the Law on Environmental Protection by industrial businesses in the province. Also important are to study, transfer and apply clean technologies via establishing and implementing technical solutions, increasing information exchanges and training consultation about cleaner production, ensuring wide application of demonstration projects and supporting businesses in assessing cleaner production potential in their units.
The Department of Industry and Trade is compiling on an instruction for the implementation of the Cleaner Production Strategy until 2020 to submit to the People's Committee for approval right in 2010. The strategy will get underway in the ensuing years. In the meantime, the province is materializing a program on cleaner production and energy efficiency and conservation with capital taken from the budget for science and technology development. The province expects its more industrial businesses will embrace on the cleaner production approach after the CPI project comes to end./.
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