Environment

Authorities in Quang Ninh Province have issued a fine of VND300m (USD13,043) to a local boat for illegally dumping waste mud into Ha Long Bay.

A cargo ship carrying 43 crew and about 6,000 cows sank at sea after transmitting a distress signal during a typhoon off Japan, according to a survivor rescued by the country's coast guard.

The Dong Nai Provincial Forest Ranger Department on September 2 announced that a newborn elephant has been spotted in a forest in Dinh Quan District.

While air quality in Hanoi’s inner city remained mostly good and average in the last week of August, it did drop in some areas compared to previous weeks.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has signed a decision to assign Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung as new Chairman of the Viet Nam National Mekong Committee (VNMC).

A new heat wave is forecast to expand to northwestern provinces from September 1 until the end of this week on September 5, according to the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting.

Farmers in Đồng Tháp Province’s Hồng Ngự District will not grow the autumn-winter rice crop, the year’s third, on more than 9,000ha and will instead release floodwaters into their fields to fertilise the soil and destroy pathogens and pests.

Authorities in Quang Tri Province have proposed using German Shepherd dogs to chase wild Hatinh langurs or Trachypithecus hatinhensis, back to the forest to ensure safety for both local people and the langurs.

Farmers in Phu Yen Province's Phu Mo Commune have illegally destroyed 50 ha of forest land in just two weeks.

A company in the central city of Danang has been fined for illegally dumping waste into the sea.

With its neighbours activating new dams, Iraq's historic twin rivers could run dry -- unless new infrastructure projects and tense talks with Turkey and Iran bear fruit.

A waste treatment facility in Ha Tinh Province has been abandoned for not meeting the environmental standards set by the Ministry of Construction despite the huge amount of waste discharged daily.

The quality of surface water in many lakes and rivers in the north has improved, but 15 monitoring areas of 185 that have been monitored remain heavily polluted, mainly on the Cau and Nhue-Day rivers.

The Prime Minister has just issued Directive 33/CT-TTg on strengthening the management, reuse, recycling, treatment and reduction of plastic waste.

The water level in the Red River section in Lao Cai Province has risen significantly after a Chinese dam opened its floodgates on August 20.

Authorities in Nha Trang City are still struggling to relocate fish sauce factories which are causing pollution.

The management board of the marine protected area (MPA) in Phu Quy island district of south-central Binh Thuan province released 45 baby turtles to the sea on August 17.

Many areas in Ha Long City have been deeply submerged in water on the morning of August 17 following heavy rains.

HCM City Department of Construction has proposed to collect fees on discharged water in an effort to deal with the severe flooding problem in the area.