HANOI, March 6 (Xinhua) -- Many localities in Vietnam including the capital city of Hanoi have been urged to take swift action to address the increasingly severe air pollution problem, local newspaper Vietnam News reported on Monday.
The air quality in Hanoi and other localities is worsening, negatively impacting people's health and economic activities, said the Department of Environmental Pollution Control under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment in a recent document.
Compounding this, the current weather conditions are disadvantageous for the diffusion of air pollutants, which makes dust stay longer in the air, the newspaper cited the department as reporting.
The Air Quality Index of Hanoi, southern Ho Chi Minh City and the northern province of Thai Nguyen are at either an "unhealthy" and "very unhealthy" level, it added.
The environment department ordered local authorities to increase the frequency of air monitoring programs, install more automatic monitoring stations, and focus on inspecting and supervising industrial production companies to control emissions.
It also requested local officials to closely monitor and oversee construction sites to ensure compliance with regulations aimed at curbing and mitigating harmful air emissions resulting from construction-related activities, the newspaper said. ■