On the evening of February 26, hundreds of residents of Hoa Lien commune gathered at the gates of the two companies to protest against their polluting practices.
Two days later, the People’s Committee of Da Nang held a meeting between the committee, residents living in the area, and representatives from the two steel plants, which are Dana-Uc and Dana-Y (Dana-Australia and Dana-Italy, respectively). After the meeting, Dana-Uc and Dana-Y were forced to temporarily shut down, Dan Tri reports.
All production activities are currently suspended. Activities such as transportation, administration, and trading are still allowed, but under close supervision. The city’s Environmental Protection Agency and the Hoa Vang People’s Committee were responsible for supervising the shutdown.
According to many locals, Dana-Uc and Dana-Y have been in operation for 10 years. For the past six years, residents of Hoa Lien have been protesting against the companies' production practices for polluting the environment and damaging their livelihoods.
City officials were aware of the problem and proposed relocating 50% of the area's households by the end of 2017. However, the pledge was opposed by some, saying that the two companies were already destroying the whole location and that moving households would not suffice.
On March 2, the Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Da Nang announced that the two companies are going to be relocated, together with a number of nearby households.
[Photo via Vietnam Plus]
