The central highland city of Da Lat in Lam Dong Province will be Viet Nam’s representative to receive the fourth ASEAN Environmentally Sustainable City at the fifteenth ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Environment.

 Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has asked the People’s Committee of Binh Dinh and other authorised agencies to promptly investigate media reports of  deforestation in the central province and report back to him before October 30.

The Ba Ria - Vung Tau province is conducting a rehabilitation of the coral reef at the Ramsar area of Con Dao National Park.

 The Ministry of Construction has asked the authorities in Thua Thien-Hue Province to gather opinions from experts and the public before building a large-scale resort project and cable car system on Bach Ma Mountain.

Experts from government and law enforcement agencies of Vietnam and the UK met at a conference in Hanoi on September 7 to discuss measures to combat the illegal wildlife trade.

 The Vietnam Administration of Forestry in partnership with USAID announced the establishment of an elephant sanctuary in central Quang Nam province on September 7.

Ash and slag waste from thermal power plants in Quang Ninh Province is contaminating the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Ha Long Bay.

 Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has approved a project to develop a marine environment monitoring system in the central provinces of Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue.

The Cham island’s Marine Protected Area (MPA) management board started conservation of the green turtle (Chelonia mydas) by hatching 450 eggs taken from Con Dao Island on August 30.

 A total of 300,000 ocean fingerlings were released into an area of Tam Giang Lagoon in central Thua Thien- Hue Province, aiming to produce a swift recovery for local seafood resources after the Formosa toxic spill in 2016.

 Destructive human activities have put coral reefs, sea grass beds and many other marine species off Ly Son Island at risk, with local authorities urged to make more efforts to preserve the unique ecosystem.

 A carbon market will be one of the means for Vietnam to achieve the committed greenhouse gas emission reduction targets, said the Director of the Department of Meteorology, Hydrology and Climate Change.

 Many precious and protected animals at the Kon Ka Kinh National Park in Gia Lai Province, one of 27 national parks listed on ASEAN Heritage Park, are being hunted and killed.

A conference took place in Thua Thien – Hue on August 31 to discuss the protection and resilience of the marine ecosystem in the waters in the four central regions that suffered from mass fish deaths last year.

 Shrinking and degrading wild elephant habitats in Dak Lak have led to a shortage of food and more conflicts between wild and domestic animals, according to Director of the Dak Lak Elephant Conservation Centre.

 A “Say No to Ivory” campaign was launched in Ho Chi Minh City on August 30 with a view to raising public awareness of elephant protection.

 Plans and measures to implement the Paris Agreement on climate change in the northern part of Vietnam were the focus of a conference held in Hanoi on August 29.

The use of pesticides and chemical fertiliser in farming and the discharge of solid waste from craft villages and households are the main causes of rural environmental pollution.

 Authorities in the central province of Quang Ngai has just approved an investment of VND48 billion (USD2.12 million) to recognise Ly Son into a global geopark.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment will launch a campaign to make the world cleaner from September 23-30 with the theme waste management for sustainable rural environment.