Gulf of Thailand Oil Spill Response: A Shared Responsibility

According to statistics from the Vietnam Sea and Islands Administration from annual local reports, there are an average of 3-5 oil spills each year. The estimated amount of oil discharged into the sea in Vietnam is up to 41 thousand tons/year. Observations conducted in some sea areas show that in the composition of polluted seawater, there is the presence of oil, iron, zinc, organic matter... This is one of the causes of serious marine environmental pollution, severely affecting the ecology, aquaculture activities, tourism...

Together to overcome

Oil spills are transboundary in nature and are not the problem of any one locality or country, but require the responsibility and joint efforts of relevant localities and countries. Therefore, international cooperation aims to improve the capacity to respond to and overcome the consequences of oil spills.

In 2006, through PEMSEA, Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia signed the Joint Statement and Framework Program on Cooperation in Preparedness for Oil Spill Response in the Gulf of Thailand. On August 14, 2009, the Prime Minister issued Decision No. 1278/QD-TTg on “Approving the Plan for Implementation of the Joint Statement and Framework Program between Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand on Cooperation in Preparedness for Oil Spill Response in the Gulf of Thailand.

Continuously in the next 10 years, the Vietnamese Government issued Decision No. 1278/QD-TTg of the Prime Minister approving the Plan to implement the Joint Statement and Framework Program between Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand on cooperation in oil spill response (SCTD) in the Gulf of Thailand and a series of action cooperation plans.

At the same time, assign focal units to implement the Joint Statement and the Framework Program such as establishing a coordination mechanism for response - the National Oil Spill Response Center (NOSPC) in the three countries. In Vietnam, the National Search and Rescue Committee is the agency that directs and implements oil spill response activities. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment is the national focal agency to implement the Joint Statement and the Framework Program.

And Vietnam's efforts

With the signing, cooperation and implementation of tasks, the work of overcoming the oil spill in the Gulf of Thailand has recorded many positive results. Regarding training, training, drills and propaganda, raising awareness for the community: The National Committee for Search and Rescue and the Southern Oil Spill Response Center under the Oil and Gas Group have organized training on coordination in responding to oil spills at sea according to the provisions of the Framework Program and the Joint Statement. In particular, the National Committee for Search and Rescue, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment organized training courses to raise awareness of local officials on oil spill response activities; the General Department of Sea and Islands has implemented the Project "Propaganda, raising awareness of the community on environmental protection, responding to and overcoming oil spills at sea" in all 28 coastal provinces and cities.

Vietnam proactively responds to oil spills

Regarding international cooperation in preventing, responding to and overcoming oil spills: Annual conferences of national focal agencies of Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia are held annually and chaired by the countries in turn. Through these conferences, they have contributed to promoting the completion of the legal framework for monitoring, risk assessment, response, overcoming and resolving the consequences of oil spills at sea.

In particular, with Decision No. 12/2021/QD-TTg, dated March 24, 2021, Vietnam issued regulations on oil spill response activities; issued a national oil spill response plan, a list of dispersants permitted for use in Vietnam's waters, and guidelines on the process of using dispersants in responding to oil spills at sea. This is the basis for discussion and agreement on the Joint Oil Spill Response Plan for the Gulf of Thailand region, which has been developed but has not been agreed upon for many years. Most recently, the Annual Meeting of the Joint Statement and the Framework Program for Cooperation on Oil Spill Response in the Gulf of Thailand and a series of related activities on oil spill response in the region as stipulated in the Joint Statement and the Framework Program among the three countries took place.

In particular, by implementing the components in the Joint Statement and the Framework Program and performing the task of "International cooperation with Cambodia, Thailand and relevant international organizations and individuals in preparing, responding to, overcoming and resolving the consequences of oil spills at sea"; performing the tasks assigned by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the Vietnam Administration of Seas and Islands has contributed to affirming the important position and role of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment in general and the Vietnam Administration of Seas and Islands in particular in actively participating in implementing and concretizing the Joint Statement and the Framework Program on cooperation in readiness to respond to oil spills in the Gulf of Thailand that have been signed.

The implementation of the task is also the basis for regular assessment, experience drawing, and proposing methods of cooperation between countries in preparing and responding to oil spills in the most effective way, contributing to protecting the marine environment; The results of the task are the basis for international cooperation in preparing, responding, overcoming and resolving the consequences of oil spills at sea.

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