Waterways In Vietnam Essay

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Introduction
Vietnam is experiencing a drastic change in its economy away from agriculture, forestry and fisheries towards industrialization. The resulting economic growth from this shift has brought significant benefits to the people of Vietnam. However, natural resources have been severely depleted and environmental quality has declined due to the rise in pollution levels from industrialization (ICEM, 2007). Figure 1 demonstrates that Vietnam is one of the highest ranked countries in the world in terms of pollution index. Figure 1: World Map of Pollution Index for 2016 (Numbeo, 2016)
Generally, industrial factories in Vietnam have a weak environmental track record. Many of these plants are without systems to control and treat wastewater …show more content…

There are many industrial manufacturing processes in use around the world that discharge large amounts of wastewater effluent into local waterways. These discharges are often a main source of pollution for the surrounding environment. Industries that use large amounts of water for manufacturing processes have the potential to pollute waterways through the discharge of their waste into streams and rivers, or by run-off and seepage of stored wastes into nearby water sources (ICEM, 2007). Pulp and paper manufacturing is an industry which uses extensive amounts of water in its processes. As a result, substantial quantities of harmful wastewater are produced. This wastewater is often dumped into local waterways without any appropriate treatment which has many negative environmental impacts. The pulp and paper manufacturing industry is one of three industries which heavily influence water pollution in Vietnam (ICEM, 2007). Figure 2 demonstrates that the pulp and paper-making industry is one of the top sectors for water pollution in …show more content…

Most chemicals from these plants are discharged directly into waterways as waste (ICEM, 2007). One way is seepage: chemicals soak through the earth into groundwater from waste disposal sites and agricultural land, for example. Another way is runoff: chemicals are washed into bodies of water from the land where they were used or spilled (ICEM, 2007). Effluents can cause fish and other aquatic wildlife to experience reduced fertility, generic deformities, immune system damage, and death (ICEM, 2007). These organic wastes that enter the water are extremely dangerous to human, plant and animal

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