Anger burns on Vietnam's poisoned coast a year after spill

Lee & Man Paper Manufacturing

04/04/2017 07:04

* Fishermen say catches are far from recovering 
    * Formosa plan promises new investment to restart plant 
    * New environmental movement means greater scrutiny 
 
    QUANG TRI, Vietnam, April 4 (Reuters) - "The big fish are 
all dead," complained 50 year-old Mai Xuan Hoa, picking small 
fish from a net as he tried to rebuild his livelihood a year 
after Vietnam's worst environmental disaster. 
    Sea life began washing up on April 6, 2016 near a steel 
plant being developed by Taiwan's Formosa Plastics Corp's 
 1301.TW . Within weeks, more than 200 km (125 miles) of coast 
had been sullied by the accidental release of chemicals 
including cyanide, phenols and iron hydroxide.   
    Along the coast, the recovery is slow and anger endures.  
    "Where we caught 10 fish in the past, now we will only catch 
one or two," Hoa said. 
    Locals says thousands of fishermen have simply given up and 
gone to look for work elsewhere. Tourists are wary of beaches 
that have lost their pristine reputation and businesses are 
struggling. 
    But the wider impact could be even greater after protests 
over the spill encouraged a wave of activism that has pushed 
environmental issues up the agenda for a communist government 
that now promises greater scrutiny of investments. 
    "First, people were angry with Formosa for polluting 
Vietnam's environment," said priest and activist Dang Huu Nam. 
    "Now, they are angry with the unclear responses and 
solutions of some provincial authorities over fixing the 
disaster."   
    More than 40,000 jobs were directly affected in four 
provinces dependent on fishing and tourism. Across the country, 
a quarter of a million workers felt the impact, according to the 
labour ministry. 
    After months of rallies and an outpouring of anger not seen 
in four decades of Communist Party rule, Formosa agreed to pay 
$500 million in compensation. 
    The Hanoi government and the provinces have now declared the 
sea clean and the seafood safe. But while no official figures 
are available, fishermen say fish stocks have yet to recover. 
 
    CATCHES DOWN 
    On a beach in Ha Tinh province, Hoa and two other 
fishermen's catch for the day was barely enough to fill a 
bucket. Compensation payments of 17.4 million dong ($765) would 
not last them long, they said. 
    Despite the reduced supply, merchants say fish prices are 
now a quarter of what they were because of fears of continued 
contamination. 
    Many fishermen have simply abandoned their boats. 
    Some 3,000 boats were affected in Quang Tri province alone, 
said Nguyen Truong Khoa, deputy director of the local 
environment department in the province, south of Ha Tinh. 
    "It will take a long time to recover completely," he said. 
    Tourists are also still wary of this stretch of coast. 
    Once bustling, the Ky Hoa seafood restaurant on the central 
beach of Cua Viet is empty. Dust settles on chairs and tables. 
    "It's like the place is dying," said owner Mai Ngoc Ky. 
    The central government says half the compensation money has 
been paid out, but many complain about the wait.  
    "If things continue like this we will soon be bankrupt," 
said seafood trader Nguyen Viet Long.  
    Vietnam's environment ministry did not respond to a written 
request for comment on the aftermath of the disaster and on when 
Formosa would be allowed to start operations. 
    Neither Ha Tinh province nor Formosa gave Reuters permission 
to visit the $11 billion plant. 
     
    PLANS TO RESTART 
    Eleven officials have been named and shamed over the spill. 
    The government says the steel plant has now addressed 51 out 
of 53 violations identified in an investigation into the 
accident, but it will only restart when it can do so safely. 
    Formosa hopes to get approval for trial runs soon, with the 
aim of starting commercial steel production by the end of the 
year, nearly a year behind schedule. 
    "We remember the lessons we've learned, and we're moving 
forward," said Chang Fu-ning, an executive vice president of the 
company. 
    Formosa has promised to invest another $350 million at the 
mill, including in a more modern 'dry' coking system which does 
not use water as a coolant but is more expensive. 
    Formosa's use of the 'wet' coking system, which generates 
more waste, was highlighted as one of the failures in the 
government report. The company said it was still using the 
dirtier process, but that it had until 2019 to switch. 
    Formosa wants to make steel mill the biggest of its kind in 
Southeast Asia, exactly the sort of investment the government 
seeks so as to maintain annual growth rates of over 6 percent. 
    But the activist movement roused by the spill has made 
Vietnamese - and the government - more attuned to environmental 
risks. 
    In February, the government said it would not grant licenses 
to any projects with a high pollution risk. Deputy Prime 
Minister Trinh Dinh Dung asked the environment ministry to 
revise rules and to intensify inspection and supervision of 
projects at the investment and construction stage. 
    When people in southern Vietnam reported a bad smell and 
dust from a new mill being started by Hong Kong-listed Lee & Man 
Paper Manufacturing Ltd  2314.HK  last month, the Hau Giang 
province was quick to investigate. 
    The company has since promised measures to reduce pollution. 
    "People are worried about not only their future but also 
their children's future. They will continue to fight until their 
rights are satisfied and protected," said activist Nam. 
($1=22,770 dong) 
 
 (Reporting by Hanoi bureau; Editing by Lincoln Feast) 
 
Keywords: FORMOSA PLASTICS VIETNAM/