New environmental protection fees are expected to reduce the volume of industrial wastewater in Ho Chi Minh City, while higher parking fees on city centre streets will curb traffic congestion, according to the city’s Transport Department.

HCM City will raise environmental protection fees on July 1^st and parking fees on August 1^st.

The city expects to collect several million USD through the new fees, the department said.

The calculation method now being used for assessing environmental protection fees does not correspond with the volume of discharged industrial wastewater, according to the department.

Beginning on July 1, the city’s Department of Natural Resources and Environment will apply a new method to calculate fees for industrial wastewater discharge.

Last year, the city collected a total of VND 8 billion (USD 350,000) from environmental protection fees. However, with the new calculation method, the city is expected to collect VND 60 billion (USD 2.7 million).

The city will collect a fixed fee of VND 1.5 million (USD 70) per year from companies that discharge under five cubic metres of industrial wastewater per day.

For companies that discharge more than five cubic metres, the fee will be VND 1.5 million (USD 64.5) plus K coefficient (wastewater flow). The fee will be proportional to the pollutant content found in wastewater.

The fees also apply to healthcare establishments, which discharge about 22,260 cubic metres of medical waste per day, while solid waste treatment establishments discharge 7,880cu.m per day, according to the city’s Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

From August 1^st, HCM City will also raise parking fees for automobiles that park on 35 streets in the centre of the city.

The aim is to restrict the number of private vehicles and encourage use of public transport, according to the Transport Department.

The city estimates it can collect VND 31 billion (USD 1.4 million) a month from the new parking fees.

The new parking fee will be calculated by the hour. Vehicles are currently charged a maximum of VND 5,000 (USD 0.215).

Under the new method, there will be two kinds of fees, depending on vehicle types.

The first is for automobiles with up to nine seats and trucks weighing up to 1.5 tonnes; the second is for automobiles with 10 -16 seats and trucks weighing between 1.5 tonnes and 2.5 tonnes.

The parking fee for the first group will be VND 20,000-25,000 (USD 0.86 - 1.07) per hour for the first and second hour; VND 25,000-30,000 for the third and fourth hour; and VND 30,000-35,000 (USD 1.29 - 1.5) from the fifth hour onwards. The fees for parking overnight will be VND 120,000-150,000 (USD 5.16 -6.45).

For the second group of vehicles, the fee will be VND 25,000-30,000 per hour for the first and second hour; VND 30,000-35,000 for the next two hours; and VND 35,000-40,000 (USD 1.5 - 1.72) from the fifth hour onwards. Overnight parking will cost VND 150,000-180,000 (USD 6.45 - 7.74).

Parking software apps on smartphones can be used by residents to pay the new parking fees.

Ngo Hai Duong, head of the city’s Transport Department’s land transport infrastructure use and management, said the parking software app will be operated by the Viettel Group.

Local residents can look for and book parking spots on a map available on the parking app.

"The app will also allow the city to better manage parking sites and hire parking employees," Duong said./.

VNF/VNA