Vietnam unveals plan for inspecting seafood affected by toxic spill

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) says it will monitor the quality of seafood at fishing ports in four central provinces to ensure it is safe to eat following a toxic spill a few months ago that caused mass fish deaths.

The ministry will take samples of seafood for analysis every two to three days when boats arrive with their catches.

The public on September 20 were warned again to avoid seafood caught along the central coast.

A fishing market in Ha Tinh, one of the affected provinces

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development will provide fishermen with a list of seafood for them to avoid.

Ship owners and fishermen will have to brief local authorities about the areas they are fishing.

Seafood caught from the seabed will be classified and tested before it is sent to markets, MARD Deputy Minister Ha Cong Tuan said.

Vietnam’s Health Ministry on September 20 warned the public against eating deep-sea marine life caught within 13.5 nautical miles of the coast of the provinces of Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue.

Health officials also strongly advised against eating raw fish caught within 20 nautical miles of the area.

The Vietnamese government announced on June 30 that the Vietnamese unit of Taiwanese conglomerate Formosa Plastics Group was responsible for discharging toxic chemicals from its steel plant into the ocean, killing marine life and poisoning fish in the four central provinces.

The steel plant took responsibility for the disaster in June and pledged to pay US$500 million to clean up the pollution and compensate those affected.