Effective environmental control measures

1. What is environmental control?

Environmental control is the process of preventing, detecting, stopping and treating the consequences of pollution. This has been specifically stipulated in Clause 22, Article 3 of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020. It can be seen that this process is a process in which humans proactively prevent negative impacts on the environment stemming from economic development and social life activities. 

In particular, the elements that make up the environmental control process include the following:

- The purpose of the environmental control process is to prevent and control the consequences of environmental pollution. There are many reasons leading to the consequences of environmental pollution, the application of the environmental control process will be the activities to manage and overcome those consequences and restore the environment being violated. harmful.

- Regarding the content of the environmental control process, control activities include activities such as collecting, managing, publishing environmental information, implementing plans, and planning environmental control plans. contamination and promulgate and apply waste management standards before releasing them into the outside environment; Handling and overcoming polluted environmental conditions, preventing environmental pollution from before it arises,...

Accordingly, environmental information is explained in the Law on Environmental Protection 2020are figures and environmental data in the form of symbols, writing, images, numbers, sounds or similar forms; In particular, environmental information includes figures and data on environmental components, impacts on the environment, policies and laws on protecting environmental activities;

The environmental database contains collections of environmental information that have been built, updated and maintained to meet the necessary requirements for accessing and using information for environmental protection. to serve public interests according to the provisions of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020.

- The subject of the environmental control process is not only the State, state environmental management agencies or businesses, residential areas, environmental protection associations, organizations, households, individuals,... From there, it can be seen that the process of environmental control does not belong to any organization or individual in society but to the entire community. 

2. Environmental control measures

2.1 Environmental control methods

Environmental control methods take many forms as follows:

• Implement command measures using administrative tools: system of standards, environmental regulations, environmental permits, sanctions for violations, inspection and examination regime. Aim to change the behavior of each individual, organization, and group regarding impact on the environment;
•  Using economic tools: taxes, fees, subsidies, environmental restoration techniques, environmental funds,...
•  Technical measures: tools used in containment, recycling, treatment, reclamation, recovery;
•  Social factors: communication and education to raise awareness and understanding of the environmental control process for management agencies, organizations, groups and communities, etc. ...;

2.2 Environmental measures according to purpose

In addition to dividing specific control methods as above, control measures can also be implemented through the process of dividing environmental control purposes as follows:

 a. Control pollution through works 

- Continue to improve the legal system on environmental protection containing sanctions including administrative enforcement and criminal sanctions of a strong enough nature to deter violators and violators;

- Develop a synchronous process of environmental treatment systems at factories and industrial parks according to legal standards;

- Carry out the process of improving expertise to detect, prevent and promptly handle polluting acts of organizations and individuals throughout the community.

- Publicly and transparently implement plans on activities and environmental waste treatment standards;

- Strict regulations on waste collection and treatment processes, and periodic reporting on waste treatment activities;

- Promote environmental propaganda and education activities throughout society on preserving and protecting the environment;

Among the above factors, the factors that are currently being emphasized in the application process are factors such as market and social factors that are increasingly favored.

b. Environmental prevention

- Owners of establishments with business, production, or transportation purposes that are at risk of releasing waste into the environment need to apply preventive measures such as: 

+ Plan to prevent and respond to environmental incidents;

+ Installing equipment and means to respond to environmental incidents;

+ Training and coaching management forces on environmental incidents;

+ Implement inspection regimes and apply safety measures based on legal standards;

+ Apply exclusion measures to minimize risks and respond to environmental incidents.

- Ministries, ministerial-level agencies and provincial/city-level People's Committees, within the scope of their duties and powers, are responsible for implementing the following:

+ Carry out investigations, statistics and assessments of environmental risks and incidents occurring within countries, regions and localities;

+ Build capacity to prevent and warn of potential risks to the environment;

+ Develop plans to prevent and respond to annual and periodic environmental incidents;

c. Respond to environmental incidents

- Organizations and individuals that cause environmental incidents must apply emergency measures to ensure the safety of other individuals in the community and property; Take measures to save lives and property promptly, quickly and effectively; At the same time, notify local authorities about the incident and have a plan to overcome the consequences;

- When an incident occurs, the head of the local facility is responsible for quickly mobilizing the number of human resources and means to promptly respond;

- In case of force majeure occurs, it is necessary to notify the superior agency with an emergency warning to mobilize more human resources and means to promptly fix the problem and apply plans and measures to protect and respond. with breakdown in capacity.