Circular No. 55/2014/TT-BNNPTNT guiding the implementation of certain environmental protection activities in the National Target Program on New Rural Development for the period 2010-2020

CIRCULAR

HGuidelines for implementing certain environmental protection activities under the National Target Program for New Rural Development during the period of 2010-2020

Regarding the National Target Program on building new rural areas from 2010 to 2020

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Pursuant to Decree No. 199/2013/NĐ-CP dated November 26, 2013 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

Pursuant to the Environmental Protection Law 2014;

Pursuant to Circular No. 41/2013/TT-BNNPTNT dated October 4, 2013 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development guiding the implementation of the National Criteria for New Rural Areas;

Pursuant to Joint Circular No. 13/2011/TTLT-BXD-BNN&PTNT-BTNMT dated October 28, 2011 of the Ministries of Construction, Agriculture and Rural Development, and Natural Resources and Environment regarding the regulations on planning, reviewing, and approving the construction plans for new rural areas;

At the proposal of the Director of the Department of Science, Technology and Environment,

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development issues this Circular guiding the implementation of certain environmental protection activities under the National Target Program for New Rural Development during the period of 2010-2020.

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation and Applicability

Article 1. Scope of application: This Circular guides the implementation of certain environmental protection activities under the National Target Program for New Rural Development during the period of 2010-2020, including the following contents:

a) Building, improving, and upgrading drainage systems and wastewater treatment facilities;

b) Establishing waste collection and treatment points;

c) Renovating and improving cemeteries;

d) Improving and constructing ecological ponds and lakes, developing green spaces.

Article 2. Applicability: This Circular applies to organizations, individuals, and households implementing the National Target Program for New Rural Development during the period of 2010-2020 (hereinafter referred to as the Program).

Article 2. Interpretation of Terms

In this Circular, the following terms are understood as follows:

1. A commune-level environmental service organization is an entity responsible for collecting, transporting, and treating waste and providing other environmental services established according to current regulations and operating under the rules prescribed by the People's Committee of the commune.

2. Organic waste: Waste originating from food, livestock manure, vegetables, fruits, etc. Inorganic waste includes all other types of waste.

3. Concentrated production area: An area dedicated to producing goods and providing services for production with clearly defined geographical boundaries.

4. Ecological ponds and lakes: Ponds and lakes meeting environmental hygiene standards, playing a significant role in natural and landscape ecosystems, bringing benefits to human life, as well as supplying water for domestic and production purposes, irrigation, aquaculture, eco-tourism, microclimate improvement, biodiversity conservation, and environmental protection.

5. Production, business, and service wastewater: Wastewater from industrial zones, clusters of industries, craft villages, production bases, household production, business services, and livestock farms.

Article 3. General Principles

Article 1. Planning, reviewing, and approving design and construction files for drainage systems, wastewater treatment facilities at waste collection and treatment points; improving and constructing ecological ponds and lakes in residential areas, and developing green spaces in public works must be carried out based on the approved master plan for new rural commune construction as stipulated in Joint Circular No. 13/2011/TTLT-BXD-BNNPTNT-BTNMT dated October 28, 2011 of the Ministries of Construction, Agriculture and Rural Development, and Natural Resources and Environment regarding the regulations on planning, reviewing, and approving the construction plans for new rural communes.

Article 2. Principles for constructing and maintaining environmental protection works in the Program (waste collection, wastewater treatment, cemetery renovation and beautification...): Leveraging the role of local communities, the State plays a guiding role, issuing criteria, standards, policies, and supporting part of the capital. Specific activities are decided and organized by the community through democratic discussion.

Article 3. Implementing socialization policies in the field of environmental protection within the Program, mobilizing and organizing people to create a legal basis for the active and comprehensive participation of all economic sectors and the community in investment capital, construction, production of equipment parts, repair services, and management operations. Encourage private sector investment in environmental protection works within the Program. Besides the contributions from the people, localities mobilize government subsidies and preferential loans through national target programs and national programs already issued by the Government, ensuring compliance with the objectives, targets, and mechanisms and policies stipulated.

Chapter II

BUILDING, IMPROVING AND UPGRADE OF DRAINAGE SYSTEMS AND WASTEWATER TREATMENT FACILITIES

Article 4. Requirements for Drainage Systems

1. Concentrated residential areas in villages and communes must have drainage systems for rainwater and domestic wastewater (hereinafter referred to as drainage systems). The drainage system must comply with the provisions of QCVN 14:2009/BXD - National Technical Regulations on Rural Area Planning, specifically:

a) At least collect 80% of the water volume for treatment;

b) For midland, mountainous areas, and scattered residential areas, the collection standard for domestic wastewater may be reduced to 60% of the water volume for treatment;

c) For dispersed residential areas without drainage systems, households are responsible for collecting and treating wastewater themselves.

2. New or upgraded drainage systems must ensure synchronization and connection with other technical infrastructure networks such as rural roads, centralized or decentralized wastewater treatment facilities.

Article 5. Principles and Requirements for Wastewater Treatment

1. Principles of Wastewater Treatment:

Wastewater treatment must be suitable for rural conditions: simple technology; low investment, operation, and maintenance costs; easy management and operation; additionally, the technology must ensure diverse treatment capabilities to meet different characteristics of wastewater in terms of flow rate and composition.

2. Requirements for Wastewater Treatment:

a) Production, business, and service wastewater: collect and treat to ensure that the maximum values of pollution parameters in the wastewater do not exceed the limits set by national environmental technical standards before discharging into the communal drainage system of the village or commune or into the environment;

b) Household livestock wastewater: collect and treat using methods such as biogas digesters, sedimentation pits, biological ponds... before discharging into the communal drainage system of the village or commune or into the environment;

c) Domestic wastewater: collect and treat using septic tanks, sedimentation pits before discharging into the communal drainage system of the village or commune or into the environment.

Article 6. Construction, Upgrading, Management of Drainage Systems and Wastewater Treatment

1. Existing drainage systems: upgrade and improve to meet drainage requirements for the entire area.

2. New drainage systems and wastewater treatment facilities: implement according to approved designs.

3. Management and Operation of Drainage Systems and Wastewater Treatment:

a) Within the internal scope of the drainage system and wastewater treatment: users manage, collect, and treat to ensure compliance with national environmental technical standards before discharging into the communal drainage system of the village or commune or into the environment;

b) General management of drainage systems and wastewater treatment: villages and communes organize management and operation models suitable for specific local conditions.

Chapter III

COLLECTION, TRANSPORTATION, AND TREATMENT OF SOLID WASTE

Article 7. Requirements for Solid Waste Classification

1. For public facilities in rural areas (schools, markets, offices, health stations, cultural-sports-religious facilities, and other public facilities), arrange locations and containers for classifying inorganic waste, organic waste, and hazardous solid waste at the source.

2. For households: collect using appropriate tools to classify waste directly at the household according to the regulations of solid waste collection units; encourage sanitary disposal of organic waste that can decompose within the household premises.

3. For solid waste from small-scale traditional craft village production activities and small production units: these units must classify, pre-treat, and contract with environmental service organizations for transportation and treatment of solid waste.

Article 8. Requirements for solid waste collection and accumulation points

1. For collection points

a) Have multi-compartment containers or separate containers for each type of waste. In cases where land areas are designated as solid waste collection points, such areas must be surrounded by fences, divided to collect different types of waste separately, and minimize environmental pollution around them;

b) Convenient for transportation;

c) The time for collecting waste to transfer sites should comply with Vietnam Construction Standard QCXDVN 01:2008/BXD on planning construction.

2. For accumulation points

a) Isolated from residential areas, not causing environmental pollution to residential areas or sources of drinking water;

b) Not located in flood-prone areas;

c) Convenient for transportation to transport waste daily.

3. For existing solid waste collection and accumulation points

a) Use multi-compartment containers and specialized waste transport vehicles for collection and accumulation of waste;

b) In cases of serious environmental pollution, thorough environmental pollution treatment must be carried out according to regulations, and new collection and accumulation points must be established to meet the requirements set forth in Clause 2 of this Article.

Article 9. Requirements for transporting solid waste

1. Waste transport vehicles from accumulation sites to disposal sites must be covered to prevent leakage, spillage of waste, dust, and odor dispersion.

2. Collection units when conducting collection and transportation must have appropriate equipment according to local regulations.

3. Transportation of solid waste must be conducted regularly, and the storage time for solid waste must comply with Vietnam Construction Standard QCXDVN 01:2008/BXD on Planning Construction.

Article 10. Requirements for treating solid waste

1. Treatment through landfilling. Landfill sites for solid waste in new rural communes without a centralized waste collection system at the district or city level, in addition to meeting the criteria specified in Clause 2 of Article 8 of this Circular, must also meet the following requirements:

a) Ensure capacity for at least 10 years;

b) Located within a landfill site plan approved by competent authorities;

c) Have isolation fences around residential areas;

d) No overflow of water outside the treatment area;

e) Effluent around the site must comply with National Technical Regulation QCVN 25:2009/BTNMT on effluent from solid waste landfills.

2. For solid waste treatment using incineration technology: exhaust gas from the incinerator must comply with National Technical Regulation QCVN 30:2010/BTNMT on industrial incinerator emissions. Post-incineration products must be treated appropriately to meet environmental requirements.

3. Solid waste treatment must ensure technical procedures that have been approved by competent authorities.

4. If both landfilling and incineration methods are applied, the treatment area must be divided into two separate zones.

Article 11. Collection and treatment of hazardous solid waste

1. Households collect hazardous waste and place it in designated locations.

2. Transporting and treating hazardous waste must be carried out in accordance with Circular 12/2011/TT-BTNMT of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment on Hazardous Waste Management Regulations.

Article 12. Management of collection, transportation, and treatment of solid waste

1. The People's Committee of the commune is responsible for managing and constructing solid waste collection, transportation, or treatment points according to plans approved by competent authorities.

2. Communes may use forms such as establishing teams, households operating service businesses, cooperatives, or environmental enterprises to collect, transport, and treat solid waste; determine funding for waste collection and treatment to organize waste collection in their villages or linked villages themselves.

3. Rules for the operation of solid waste collection, transportation, and treatment are approved and supervised by the People's Committee of the commune.

4. Households in rural, remote, and mountainous areas without a collection system must follow local government guidelines for waste treatment and must not dump waste on roads, ponds, rivers, streams, or canals.

Chapter IV

MANAGEMENT, MAINTENANCE, AND UPGRADE OF CEMETERIES

Article 13. Requirements for Renovation and Improvement of Cemeteries

1. The renovation and improvement of cemeteries must be within the approved planning scheme.

2. Construction of graves and other facilities in cemeteries must be approved by the Cemetery Management Board and must comply with the cemetery's planning scheme or management regulations that have been approved by the competent authority, adhering to the construction laws. For cemeteries directly managed by villages or hamlets, they must follow the village or hamlet agreements.

3. Architectural and environmental landscape of cemeteries

a) The architectural form of graves and tombstones must be appropriate to local culture and conditions;

b) The layout must facilitate funeral procedures, ensuring ventilation, naturalness, and preventing flooding and water leakage from the cemetery to surrounding areas;

c) Planting greenery, fences, parking lots, and lighting must be arranged conveniently according to the conditions of each area and locality.

4. Collection and Treatment of Cemetery Waste

a) Cemeteries must have a drainage system ensuring environmental hygiene quality. Surface water and wastewater drainage systems must ensure proper drainage and prevent flooding;

b) Waste from cemeteries must be collected and transported to treatment sites to ensure environmental hygiene;

c) Waste related to deceased persons due to infectious diseases or decomposed corpses must be treated in accordance with the Ministry of Health's regulations on the disposal of infectious medical waste.

5. Depending on cultural, traditional, religious, and belief characteristics of ethnic groups, there may be suitable burial forms, which must meet hygiene and environmental requirements and be considered and decided by the competent authority of the locality.

Article 14. Management of Cemeteries

1. The People's Committee of the commune is responsible for organizing the management of communal cemeteries (including villages and hamlets); other cemeteries according to the division of labor by the People's Committee of the district.

2. The People's Committee of the commune has the responsibility to mobilize and guide residents to bury their dead centrally in the cemetery according to the plan; encourage and promote cremation in hygienic conditions in places with suitable conditions.

3. Cemeteries must be managed according to management regulations that have been discussed by the community before being issued by the local authorities. New construction, expansion, or improvement of cemeteries must be based on the approved planning scheme and constructed according to the criteria for new rural construction.

4. Users of cemetery services must strictly adhere to the management regulations approved by the competent authority.

5. The Cemetery Management Board provides cemetery services to users, ensuring service quality as prescribed.

Chapter V

IMPROVEMENT AND CONSTRUCTION OF ECOLOGICAL PONDS AND LAKES, DEVELOPMENT OF GREEN SPACES

Article 15. Requirements for Ecological Pond and Lake Systems, Greenery

1. Ecological pond and lake systems in residential areas must meet the following main requirements:

a) Comply with the approved planning scheme;

b) Create open spaces, regulate climate, and enhance aesthetics;

c) Possess the ability to develop livestock and aquaculture, generating economic benefits;

d) Water quality in ponds and lakes must fall within permissible limits according to National Technical Regulation 38:2011/MONRE on surface water quality standards for aquatic life protection.

2. Greenery systems in new rural communes must meet the following main requirements:

a) Comply with the approved planning scheme;

b) Green spaces in new rural areas are connected by continuous green belts along inter-commune, inter-village roads, and within fields.

Planting trees should not affect traffic safety, damage people's facilities or public works (do not plant trees prone to falling or breaking); should not impact environmental hygiene (do not release harmful substances affecting human health); should not plant invasive alien species as defined.

c) The area of green space must be equal to or greater than 2m²/person, prioritizing planting in public locations such as commune offices, kindergartens, schools, health stations, cultural and sports centers, markets, and service shops.²/person, prioritizing planting in public locations such as: commune offices, kindergartens, schools, health stations, cultural and sports centers, markets, and service shops.

Article 16. Renovation, construction, management, and utilization of ecological ponds and lakes systems, green tree systems

1. For ecological pond and lake systems

a) Renovation and construction of ponds and lakes in communes shall be carried out according to detailed planning approved by competent authorities for public use;

b) Dredging and repairing of ponds and lakes shall be conducted regularly to create ecological space and landscape, and to regulate the environment in the locality;

c) The People's Committee of the commune shall be responsible for managing the pond and lake system within its jurisdiction;

d) The use of ponds and lakes must comply with regulations and be subject to management by the People's Committee of the commune;

2. For green tree systems

a) Renovation and construction of green trees shall be carried out according to detailed planning approved by competent authorities;

b) The People's Committee of the commune shall be responsible for managing all areas of green trees within its jurisdiction, assigning staff to inspect, supervise, and monitor the implementation of annual planting and care plans;

c) Planting and harvesting of annual tree products shall be carried out in accordance with regulations issued by the commune based on guidance from specialized agencies at the district level;

d) Trees shall not be cut down, harvested, or utilized contrary to regulations.

Chapter VI

IMPLEMENTATION

Article 17. Allocation of responsibilities

1. The Department of Science, Technology, and Environment shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant agencies and units to assist the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development in performing the following tasks:

a) Organizing inspections, directing, monitoring, evaluating, and summarizing the results of implementing mechanisms, policies, and environmental protection activities under the National Target Program for New Rural Development;

b) Guiding the implementation and inspecting compliance with this Circular;

2. Provincial People's Committees directly under the Central Government

a) Organizing, promoting, and guiding all levels of government and organizations to implement environmental protection activities at the local level;

b) Inspecting, directing, monitoring, supervising, and reporting comprehensive evaluations of environmental protection activities within the framework of the National Target Program for New Rural Development in the area; researching and issuing special mechanisms and policies in their locality to encourage environmental protection activities in rural areas.

Article 18. Effective Date

This Circular takes effect from February 20, 2015.

During implementation, if there are difficulties or obstacles, agencies, organizations, and individuals are requested to promptly reflect them in writing to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for research, revision, and supplementation to ensure appropriateness./.