According to Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Dinh Tho, General Director of the Institute of Strategy and Policy on Natural Resources and Environment, business activities are a major source of waste generation, with negative impacts on the environment.

The state has put into force regulations and laws regarding environmental protection and waste management in particular. Among them, the Law on Environmental Protection 2020 stipulates extended producer responsibilities, including recycling and waste treatment, which will help make production and consumption more environmentally friendly.

The Law on Environmental Protection 2020 has detailed regulations on the role and responsibilities of enterprises in waste management. According to Tho, untreated waste has been discharged illegally into the environment in past years, making enforcement of the new law vitally important.

Luu Binh Nhuong, Deputy Head of the National Assembly's Civil Volunteers Committee, said that applying science and technology at a high level, waste can be a “big gold mine”, but only if change occurs in the attitude of businesses, individuals and public authorities.

According to Hideki Wada, Director of the Vietnam Waste Planning Co., Ltd., before the regulations on extended producer responsibility went into force, producers were not required to recycle product waste. But now, they must consider how to reduce the amount of packaging and design products in a way that makes them easier to recycle.

Tho noted that environmental protection is the responsibility of the entire political system and society, in which enterprises play a very important role. He urged enterprises to be aware of their roles and responsibilities in environmental protection in general and waste treatment in particular. In addition, the state should continue to adopt incentive policies to encourage the implementation of circular economic models at enterprises, and strengthen law enforcement on waste management. The state should also issue specific preferential policies for waste treatment activities to attract the involvement of private enterprises in providing this service.

Hanh Nguyen