Collection of Rubbish in Tu Ne commune, Tan Lac District,Hoa Binh Province
Initially, there was no collective action which resulted in rubbish collection. Domestic rubbish from households was therefore lying about disorderly, thus polluting the environment and adversely affecting the landscape. Therefore, the collecting of rubbish and improving Tu Ne’s landscape were set as the first priorities by the commune People’s Committee. As such, two community initiatives, including the ‘Establishment of a rubbish collecting team in Village 2 and 3’ and “Improvements of Tu Ne’s landscape” were proposed by the People’s Committee to CECAD. The main activities of the two proposals were to establish a community-based rubbish collecting team and construct a rubbish dumping site in Tu Ne commune. The objectives of these two initiatives were to resolve the unhygienic and environmental problems in the Chua market area as well as in 3 villages located along Road 12B. As well as these it was important to increase the villagers awareness of the importance of environmental protection.
To start with, the Community Development Groups of Village 2 and 3 established a rubbish collecting team, which consisted of two members. CECAD also provided the team two rubbish collecting carts, labor safety uniforms, boots, shovels and hoes. The team was assigned to collect rubbish every 2 days at the fixed time in the afternoon. Collectors are paid salaries from monthly fees contributed by households, which are 15000VND/month.
A dumping site was built in 2007 in Tu Ne commune. As planned, rubbish is collected and classified into whether it is organic and inorganic. The inorganic litter is collected and then burnt while the organic litter is dumped into holes dug in the dumping site until they are full. Trees are then planted on top of the hole to prevent hygienic problems and at the same time create a nice landscape of the surrounding area. A gate and walls around the site were built to prevent cattle, buffalo, chicken and animals getting into the site so as to minimize the spreading of epidemics.
The dumping site and the rubbish collecting team have made great contributions to environmental protection in Tu Ne in particular and in Tan Lac district in general. The benefit that everyone could see right away is that a large quantity of rubbish is collected and dumped in the site. This does not only help improve the landscape of the area surrounding the Headquarters of the People’s Committee, but also the health of the villagers. Furthermore, this activity creates employment, thus generating income for collectors.
However, the rubbish collecting team is facing a number of challenges. Up to now a number of households do not want to contribute the fees. One of their arguments is that they could themselves bring their rubbish to the dumping site. In fact, they throw rubbish disorderly in the site. The gate is damaged and is not yet repaired. As a result, rubbish is seen everywhere outside the site. The quantity of rubbish that is collected and dumped in the hole accounts for 30-40% the total quantity of rubbish of the commune. The reason is that the villagers’ awareness of consequences caused by throwing rubbish disorderly is low. In addition, the local government has not yet paid due attention to environmental problems in villages. As a result, no collection action as such has been taken to fight against “rubbish”.
In order to operate the collecting team and to use the dumping site effectively and sustainably, there should be close coordination between the project’s Board of Management, the local government and the team in delegation of tasks, operation and management. It is of great important to launch more campaigns and provide training courses to increase the villagers’ awareness and involvement with environmental protection.
