The People’s Committee of Khanh Hoa Province in south-central Vietnam has tasked the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development with conducting urgent checks on a beach in Cam Ranh, a local city, after repeatedly receiving complaints about a huge volume of garbage there.

Thousands of lobster cages, paired with ragged nets, seashells, and dead fish, were said to cover the beach, causing repugnant smell that turned locals’ life upside down.

The department was asked to work with relevant units to deal with the pollution to stabilize residents’ daily life and to report the results to the authorized agencies prior to November 15.

It is urging its divisions and units to review the volume of plastic waste, lobster cages, and ragged nets to adopt effective measures, according to the department.

Over the past three years, lobster cages and plastic trash have swamped the beach in Cam Lap Commune, Cam Ranh City under Khanh Hoa Province.

Locals in Binh Lap Village said that up to 100 cages are brought to the beach for cleaning and net changes per day.

Seashells, unusable nets, and dead shellfish get left on the beach, making it polluted.

Nguyen Thi Van, a 49-year-old resident of Binh Lap Village, said that the beach was beautiful in the past, with white sand and clean water.

However, lobster farmers’ activities have turned the beach into a landfill over the past few years.

“Piles of trash on the beach have turned locals away from the place for bathing,” she recounted.

Some cage cleaners said that they were paid VND300,000 (US$12.3) for each cleaned cage, while unusable nets were collected and dried for sale by cage owners.

Meanwhile, locals said that they saw no one collect the waste.

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