The detoxified land at Da Nang airport (Photo: VNA) Da Nang (VNA) – A ceremony washeld on November 9 to mark the successful joint projects to remediate dioxin atthe Da Nang Airport.
Under Secretary of State for PoliticalAffairs Thomas A. Shannon Jr. and Deputy Chief of the General Staff of thePeople’s Army of Vietnam Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Phuong Nam attendedthe event.
The US Agency for International Development(USAID) and the Vietnam Ministry of National Defence first launched the projectin 2012, which culminated in the treatment of more than 90,000 cubic meters ofcontaminated material and contained another 60,000 cubic meters of lower riskmaterial.
Shannon stated that the Da Nang Airportproject stands as a symbol of the growing US-Vietnamese partnership anddemonstrates how both countries can turn past issues of contention into newareas of cooperation.
The Under Secretary also highlighted thatthe Da Nang Airport remediation project has enabled Da Nang city to build anairport extension that will bring new prosperity and growth to the Vietnamesepeople.
In anticipation of President Donald Trump’svisit to Vietnam, Under Secretary Shannon announced that the United States iscommitted to contributing to joint US-Vietnam dioxin remediation efforts at theBien Hoa Airbase.
A 2016 US-Vietnam joint environmentalassessment found that the volume of dioxin contamination at Bien Hoa Airbasemakes it the largest dioxin hot spot in Vietnam, highlighting the significanceof this next area of cooperation.
As the United States and Vietnam close thedoor on a painful wartime legacy and open the door into a new era ofpartnership, Under Secretary Shannon and Lieutenant General Nam said that theUS and Vietnamese people would cross the threshold together into a sharedfuture of prosperity and peace.-VNA
VNA
