Company fined after oil spill pollutes Phu Yen water table

HCM CITY — The central province of Phu Yen last Friday fined a local company VND65 million (US$3,403) for polluting the local environment.

About 210cu.m of petrol leaked by the Phu Yen General Materials Joint Stock Company has polluted the environment in Dong Hoa District's Hoa Xuan Nam Commune and damaged local residents' water source for daily use, according to the provincial People's Committee.

The petrol leaked from the company's underground pipeline spread out easily since most of the area in the coastal commune is sandy.

The company has dealt with the problem by manually digging holes scooping petrol out. The General Department of Environment has asked the company to use professional, mechanised measures to deal with the leak, but the company has not changed its tactics thus far.

Experts said the petrol would worsen the commune's water source, which had already been polluted by oil leaks from the US Army's oil pipeline running from Vung Ro Por during the American War. — VNS