Urban environmental challenges

toward sustainable development in

Hochiminh City, Vietnam
Dang Nguyen Thien Huong Email: dangthienhuong@yahoo.com

Yokohama City University, Japan

Introduction

Clean water for citizens in Vietnam (%)

Ho Chi Minh City is currently in the rapid urbanization and

the populous city in Vietnam. In 2010, Ho Chi Minh City
numbered 7.39 million inhabitants which is twice that of
Yokohama City, Japan (Approximately 3.67 million). This
high population growth rate and the steady urbanization
have lead Ho Chi Minh City into crisis of urban
environmental problems.
The three main environmental aspects, which need to be
in a state of emergency:
- Air pollution caused by traffic transportation
- Water shortage damaged by manufactures
- Solid waste scattered by domestic facilities.

70%

70

citizens
have been
supplied
clean
water

60
50
40
30
20

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Tay Bac Landfill

Area: 820 ha
Capacity: 3,000 t/day
Dong Thanh Dumpsite
Area: 43.5 ha
Capacity: 1,000 t/day
Go Cat Landfill (Full)
Area: 25 ha
Capacity: 2,000 t/day

10
0
1996

2003

2008

Can Gio
Dumpsite
1,000 t/day

Viet Star Composting

Plant

2010

Source: Unilever Vietnam Fund 2010

Thu Thua Landfill

(under construction)
Area: 1780 ha
Capacity: 3,000 t/day

Those problems are challenged Hochiminh City in a new

trend of sustainable development.

Source: Vietnam National

Environment Report 2010

Air pollution

Da Phuoc Landfill
Area: 128 ha
Capacity: 3,000 t/day

Main reasons:
-Lack of high technology of recycling
-Lack of capacity of waste collection
-Lack of waste policy
-Lack of integrated solid waste management
-NIMBY syndromes existence (NIMBY- not in my back yard)

Solution
Fuel consumption

Traffic

90%
Private
transport

Others
14%

Infrastructure

Electricity
12%
Transport
55%

Industry
19%

100%
90%
80%
70%
60%

Public transport

50%
30%

Motorbike, 90
Motorbike, 70

- Most of industry zone or factories locate along the rivers.

- Less 40% of manufactories have waste water treatment system.
- Less 50% of waste water in urban have treated, the rest discharge
to rivers or canals.
Surface water are harmful
- Clean water treatment plant has relied on ground water.
Ground water are also damaged

Car

Municipal solid waste

Motorbike

Million tons

20%

Solid
waste

Water

Policy

Municipal waste

Motorbike, 10

0%
CO

NOx

25

VOC

Industrial waste
Source: Vietnam Environment
Administration - Report 2009

Main reasons:
- Inadequate infrastructure
- Lack of public transport system
- Weak of urban planning

20

3 times

agricultural waste

Total waste

Three wheels could

change situation

- Vietnam has 13 rivers which cover about 10,000km2

- Water usage mainly for agriculture facilities but industry
is the main source of water pollution.
Water usage

2003

Industrial waste water on Thi Vai river

Source: Vietnam National

Environment Report 2010

2008

Conclusion

- Waste generation has been increased for 10 years and continued

since today.
Metal
5%

Rural area and suburban have shortage of clean water.

Source: Tuoitreonline.com

1998

Household
2%

Agriculture
84%

Clean water shortage

integrated
management

Craft villages

10

Water pollution

Tourism
3%
Fishing
4%

finance

Hospital waste

15

Industry
7%

Relationship of
environmental aspects
and management

Social
awareness

30

10%

Technology

urban
Source: Ministry of Industry
and trade Annual Report
2007.

40%

urbanization

others
6%

Waste component
Organic waste
should be used
as bio-energy or
compost.

Paper
18%
Organic
55%
Plastic
16%

Source: Vietnam National

Environment Report 2010

- Domestic waste has been discarded average 35,000 tons/day.

- Hochiminh City discards 10,120 tons waste/day in 2010.
- Waste is not separated at sources and all dispose at the landfills.
- There are 17 engineering sanitary landfills, 91 controlled landfill,
49 open dumpsites across the country.
- Hochiminh City has 4 sanitary landfills (One full capacity and one
under construction).
- Recycling rate is low.

- The three urban environmental problems cause beyond

rapid economic growth and urbanization have a complex
relationship with management aspects.
-To solve those problems, need an integrated management
system which shows step-by-step process as the main
wheel to change citizens awareness toward using less
environmental resources.
- The more we produce the more we discard. If we could
control the amount of products, we would manage the
amount of waste. Hence, we can toward sustainability.

Contact
Dang Nguyen Thien Huong (Ms)
Yokohama City University - (YCU)
22-2 Seto Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama City 236-0027, Japan
Vietnam National University Hochiminh City
University of Social Sciences and Humanities (USSH)
10-12 Dinh Tien Hoang, District 1. Hochiminh City, VN
Email: dangthienhuong@yahoo.com
Tel: +81-080-4660-0609 (Japan)
+84-090-3040-299 (Vietnam)