Da Nang (VNA) – The last 13.7 hectares of detoxified land in thedioxin-polluted area in Da Nang airport were handed over to the Ministry ofTransport at a ceremony held in the central city on November 7, raising thetotal remediated area to 32.4 hectares.

Theactivity also marked the conclusion of a six-year project to remediate theenvironmental pollution at the airport, which was jointly implemented by the VietnameseMinistry of National Defence and the USInternational Development Agency (USAID) with a non-refundable aid of 110million USD funded by the US Government.

Theproject, started in August 2012, was considered an important milestone in thebilateral cooperation between the governments of Vietnam and the US, aiming toreturning a clean and safe environment for the local community.

Itsuccessfully detoxified over 90,000 cubic metres of toxic sediments by thermaltreatment method, while isolating other 50,000 cubic metres of low-contaminatedsediments.

The testingresults on treated soil and sediments taken by the USAID and the Vietnamese Ministryof National Defence showed that the contamination is even lower than the safelevel, affirming the success of the project.

Addressingthe handover ceremony, Deputy Minister of National Defence Sen. Lieut. Gen.Nguyen Chi Vinh said that although the war ended decades ago, the bomb, mineand chemical pollution have directly harmed the safety and health of manypeople, affecting Vietnam’s environment and socio-economic development as wellas its implementation of the Millennium Development Goals.

Therefore,the Party, Government and relevant agencies of Vietnam have applied a number ofpolicies, measures and practical activities to speed up the settlement of waraftermaths, with priority given to the treatment of toxic chemicals.

He affirmedthat the project to deal with dioxin pollution in the Da Nang airport hascompleted all of its objectives.

Vinh asked authorisedagencies and the US side continue to working closely in performing long-term environmentalmonitoring following the project, thus maintaining the clean environment forsocial-economic development of Da Nang city.

Vietnam’s authorisedagencies should promptly give evaluation on the results and efficiency of theproject, thus building an overall scientific report to announceinternationally, he requested.

The DeputyMinister also expressed his hope that a project to remediate dioxin pollutionin Bien Hoa airport will be launched in 2019, along with many other activitiesto settle war consequences in Vietnam.

USAmbassador to Vietnam Daniel J. Kristenbrink announced the accomplishment ofdioxin detoxification in the Da Nang airport, describing it as a considerablemilestone in the expanding relationship between the two countries.

The handingover of the last treated area is expected to facilitate the expansion of theairport and promote socio-economic growth of Da Nang, said the diplomat.

The USAIDwill continue collaborating with Vietnam’s Ministry of National Defence todetoxify dioxin pollution in the Bien Hoa airport, he affirmed.-VNA