Ha Long Bay

According to the UN Environment Program, around 8 million tons of plastic waste is dumped into the ocean each year, 60% of it in Asia. Vietnam China, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand throw more plastic waste into the sea than all other countries combined. Plastic waste kills sea creatures and damages other marine resources. It takes decades to break down plastic waste.

From 2016 to 2018, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and GreenHub worked together to clean up beaches and collect data on marine pollution in Vietnam. Launched last March, the “Moving toward model cities for waste management in coastal northeast Vietnam” project aims to reduce plastic waste pollution and strengthen waste management in aquaculture and fishing. Tran Thi Hoa, Director of GreenHub, said: “We are implementing many projects to reduce plastic waste in Ha Long Bay and Cat Ba island. The local authorities have pledged to join our efforts to reduce plastic waste but we also need the cooperation of other agencies to reduce not just plastic waste but also all types of waste.”

The project has undertaken surveys, research, caging of aquaculture areas in Cat Ba and Ha Long Bay and measures to help local fishermen reduce and manage waste. Local agencies have worked together to collect, transport, and treat plastic waste and promote environment friendly products.

From Ha Long and Hai Phong, the project will expand to other regions throughout Vietnam.