Da Nang (VNA) – Over the past 25 years, the centralcity of Da Nang has worked hard to contribute to the Vietnam-US cooperationthrough various joint projects, one of which was the dioxin detoxification inDa Nang airport.

According to Vice Chairman of the municipal People’sCommittee Ho Ky Minh, the Prime Minister in 2012 approved a national plan ofaction to address the consequences of toxic chemicals used by the US during thewar in Vietnam to 2015 and orientations to 2020. One of the tasks set by thenational plan was to detoxify dioxin-polluted soil and sludge in Da Nangairport.

The project on dioxin detoxification in Da Nang airport wasconducted by the People’s Air Defence-Air Force with the sponsorship of the USAgency of International Development (USAID, with the goal of treating andisolating dioxin-contaminated sludge to eliminate dioxin exposure risk in thesurrounding community, while enhancing Vietnam’s capacity in implementingenvironmental pollution assessment and treatment activities.

It covered an area of 18.3 hectares with 72,900 cu.m ofsludge needing treating. In 2016, the total volume of sludge and soil subjectedfor detoxification increased to 150,000 cu.m.

Capital for the project came from non-refundable ODA of theUS Government through the USAID.

During its implementation from 2012 to 2018, the People’sCommittee of Da Nang directed sectors and localities to coordinate with andcreate favourable conditions for the project, said Minh.

He said that in 2014, the city proposed the project side andrelevant agencies to organise training courses on work safety for workers andmanagement officials to avoid risk of exposure to dioxin. Da Nang also sentofficials to join the courses.

According to a report from the Air Defence - Air Force,162,567 cu.m of dioxin contaminated sludge and soil were cleaned, returningabout 29 hectares of area for social-economic activities. Dioxin exposure riskfor human and environment was minimised. The success of the project helpederase Da Nang airport, which is a former US air base, out of the dioxin hotspot list. Work safety was ensured throughout the implementation of the projectand no incident was recorded.

Minh said that the completion of the project gave more areafor the expansion of Da Nang International Airport, with the building of T2 Terminal,to raise the airport’s capacity to 6 million passengers per year and 1,600passengers per hour in peak time.

Under the airport’s planning, the terminal is expected toserve over 2.3 million passengers in 2022, 4 million in 2025 and 6 million in2030.

Regarding the cooperation in other fields between Da Nangand US businesses and organisations so far, Minh said that as of May 31, DaNang had hosted 68 projects invested by US businesses with total investment of590 million USD.

According to Minh, revenue in the US market accounted for20.5 percent of the total export value of the city. Major products shipped tothe US included garment and textile, fisheries, children’s toys, fishing rods,candles, furniture, handicrafts, automobile spare parts, and electricityengines.

Meanwhile, imports from the US made up about 5 percent ofthe city’s total, mostly for equipment, transport vehicles, pharmaceuticals,materials for fishing rod production and for garment and textile sector, andplastics.

Currently, more than 20 local enterprises in Da Nang havetraded with US peers, said Minh.

He noted that in the coming time, Vietnamese and USenterprises will seek partnership in tourism, development of supply chain and humanresources, ports and logistics, urban public transportation, information andcommunication technology and smart city, health care, education and training.

The Da Nang government will create optimal conditions forinvestors, Minh said, adding that the city will coordinate with businesses andinvestors to remove obstacles and difficulties facing them during theimplementation of projects./.