The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental (MONRE) punished 520 companies for violating environmental laws with total fines reaching nearly 60 billion VND (2.6 million USD) in 2015.
Twenty traditional craft villages that were identified as Hanoi's worst polluters will receive Government funds totaling 100 billion VND to build wastewater treatment systems by 2020.
More than 220 people died or went missing, while damage totaled 660 million USD a year due to unseasonal rains, landslides, erosion, whirlwinds and lightning between 2011 and 2015.
The Vietnamese environment sector's main tasks this year include administrative reform, tightened controls on natural resources and more measures to tackle climate change.
The El Nino phenomenon in 2016 will cause freshwater shortage in Ho Chi Minh City and other southern areas, the National Hydro-Meteorological Service has said.
The Bank for Investment of Development of Vietnam (BIDV) in Ho Chi Minh City on December 30 signed a contract to sponsor a green project in the southern hub.
The forestry sector will focus on promoting the sustainable management and certification of forests in the coming years, according to Ha Cong Tuan, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development
Impacts from the El Nino phenomenon have caused heavy damage to around 20,000 hectares of rice in the southernmost province of Ca Mau, according to the provincial agricultural agency.
Localities in the Mekong Delta region have been urged to accelerate agricultural restructuring and shift the crop structure to effectively adapt to climate change.
The Vingroup officially opened the wildlife conservation park Vinpearl Safari in Phu Quoc island in the southern province of Kien Giang on December 24.