Latest update in 2022: Regulatory chart, profile, procedures for general environmental management in Vietnam!

Latest update in 2022: A Chau Environment would like to summarize the general environmental regulations - records - procedures, and prepare to assist customers in implementing "Right - Enough" environmental management 2022 in the simplest and most optimal manner.

View the following articles on environmental profiles:

What is the environmental license? What is the subject, content and licensing authority for environmental license?

What is the report on environmental impact assessment (EIA)? Who must implement and who is the evaluating agency?

What is the environmental registration? Who must implement, exempt from performance, and who is the evaluating agency?

To control this whole process, a diagram encapsulating the most basic environmental records and procedures will assist investors, businesses,... and the staff who is in charge of overall and proactive management in controlling this entire process will check and closely monitor the establishment's environmental management activities.

General diagram of environmental regulations - records - procedures

I. Before going into operation, the project preparation stage:

According to current regulations, a number of environmental documents must be created before going into official operation. Investment projects are classified into four groups based on environmental criteria: I, II, III and IV. This subgroup will determine which projects are subject to which records must be made. Environmental Impact Assessment, Environmental License, Environmental Registration, or Exemption from Environmental Registration?

Customers can look up in Appendix I, II, III, IV, V - attached to Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP and objects exempted from environmental registration in Appendix XVI - issued together with Decree No. Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP.

1. The project must first conduct a preliminary environmental impact assessment during the pre-feasibility study of construction investment, proposal of investment policy, request for approval of investment policy,..., investment projects belonging to group I specified in Clause 3 of Article 28 of the Law on Environmental Protection in 2020.

This section is omitted if the project is not subject to a preliminary environmental impact assessment.

2. Environmental impact assessment dossiers: Group I investment projects specified in Clause 3, Article 28 of the Law on Environmental Protection and Group II investment projects specified at Points c, d, dd and e, Clause 4, Article 28 of the Law on Environmental Protection will be required to conduct an environmental impact assessment (Clause 1, Article 30, Environmental Protection Law). After the investment project has received approval for the appraisal results of the environmental impact assessment report, the investor must prepare an application dossier for an environmental license before proceeding with the trial operation. The proposed report will be evaluated by the agency, and an environmental license will be issued.  

3. Environmental license dossiers: Group I, Group II and Group III investment projects that discharge wastewater, dust, or exhaust gases into the environment must be treated, or they generate hazardous wastes that must be managed in accordance with waste management regulations when officially put into operation, and establishments that operated before January 1, 2022, have the same environmental criteria as the subjects mentioned above.

4. Subjects to environmental registration include: Investment projects generate wastes that do not require environmental licenses; and establishments operated before January 1, 2022 and generate wastes that do not require environmental licenses.

5. For projects that include waste treatment facilities (treatment of waste water, dust, exhaust gases, solid waste, and hazardous waste, for example), the investor must run a trial operation alongside the project to assess the suitability and satisfaction of the project in accordance with technical environmental regulations. The process of trial operation of the entire investment project or for each investment phase of the project (if any) or for an independent waste treatment work item of the project. The trial operation lasted between 3 and 6 months. Following completion, the investor must submit a report on trial operation results to a competent agency. If the report on trial operation results is approved, the facility will begin official operations.

Note: Investment projects after environmental impact assessment, that are not subject to the implementation of environmental licenses, the investor will conduct environmental registration before beginning official operations.

Illustration

II. Operational stage:

According to the issued environmental dossiers, if the establishment generates wastes, emissions, dust, wastewater, noise, vibration, light, radiation,... the environmental protection activities are required, they include:

 1. Waste

- First, the types of waste generated at the establishment are classified into four major categories: Domestic waste; normal industrial solid waste - waste generated during production and business operations; controlled industrial waste and hazardous waste such as light bulbs, batteries, accumulators, lubricants, chemical drums,… These waste groups are declared, identified, classified, and stored in separate storage with technical storage equipment.

- In Appendix III to Circular No. 02/2022/TT-BTNMT, Customers can look up the name and waste code to determine which waste belongs to hazardous waste, normal industrial solid waste, controlled industrial waste, or solid waste that can be reused, used directly as raw materials, fuel, or materials for production activities.

- For domestic waste and normal industrial solid waste, the establishment must have a contract for the transfer and treatment to a functional unit as well as a record of delivery and receipt in each handover. For hazardous waste and controlled industrial waste, the establishment must strict adherence to regulations on waste identification and classification, storage and storage equipment. Then, signing contract with functional unit for hazardous waste treatment. Each waste handover includes a delivery record as well as documents after treatment.

2. Wastewater

Establishments must have equipment or systems in place to collect and treat wastewater using technology appropriate for the characteristics and flow of the wastewater, as well as to operate the treatment system and ensure that the output wastewater meets current standards. Preparing a strategy for responding to and preventing environmental incidents. Establishments are encouraged to reuse wastewater directly for production, business and service activities in accordance with the law.

3. The establishment produces exhaust gas, dust, odor,…

The establishment must have an appropriate control plan or treatment works.

4. For manufacturing, business, and service activities that generate noise, vibration, light, radiation,...

The establishment must retain control or have a plan in place to minimize and deal with it.

Based on the responsibilities specified in the environmental dossier, environmental permit, component environmental permit, the provisions of Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP, or the agency's request, the establishment will perform periodic environmental quality monitoring or continuous automatic monitoring.

5. Environmental protection report:

An annual environmental report that a business must implement. However, the following changes will be made to the report's content beginning in 2022:

- The establishment selects one of the two forms:

Environmental protection report form is applicable to owners of production, business, and service establishments to environmental licenses - Form No. 05.A, Appendix VI of Circular No. 02/2022/TT-BTNMT

Environmental protection report form is applicable to establishments to environmental registration - Form No. 05.B Appendix VI Circular No. 02/2022/TT-BTNMT

- Beginning in 2022, the establishment must submit an environmental protection report by January 5 of the following year (earlier than the old regulation before January 31).

Legal basis

Pursuant to the Law on Environmental Protection No.72/2020/QH14 dated November 17, 2020 of the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam;

CPursuant to Decree No.08/2022/ND-CP dated January 10, 2022  Decree detailing a number of articles of the Law on Environmental Protection;

Pursuant to Circular No.02/2022/TT- BTNMT dated January 10, 2022 Circular detailing a number of articles of the Law on Environmental Protection;

Source: A Chau Environment