On February 24, 2020, the Government issued Decree No. 23/2020 / ND-CP stipulating the management of river-bed sand and gravel and the protection of river beds, banks. This Decree takes effect from April 10, 2020.
Accordingly, Decree No. 23/2020 / ND-CP has many strict management regulations related to planning of river sand and gravel areas; exploration, exploitation, gathering, transportation, trading and use of river sand and gravel, specifically as follows:
1. Contents of a planning for the management of river-bed sand and gravel
– Potential resources of sand and gravel in the river bed in the river basin
– Requirements for environmental protection; protecting river beds, banks and beaches; disaster prevention and response to climate change in the region.
– Development planning viewpoints and objectives will guide the exploration, exploitation and use of river-bed sand and gravel in the basin.
– Orientations for exploring and exploiting sand and gravel in river beds in river basins in the planning region on the time, the total volume of licensed exploitation in their respective localities in the planning period.
2. Licensing for exploration, exploitation of river sand and gravel
– Licensing is done through auction of mining rights
– In case the river licensing area is adjacent to two or more provinces, the opinions of all PPCs that the river must pass must be consulted.
– Mining time: from 07:00 am to 05 pm; It is not allowed to exploit at night and it must clearly state the total exploitation time in a year in the permit.
3. Requirements on trading and using river sand and gravel in the transportation process
In the process of transporting sand and gravel in the river, the vehicle owner must bring along invoices and documents proving that the origin of sand and gravel is legal, including information on data, books and vouchers about the information of sand and gravel in transit.
As such, Decree 23/2020 / ND-CP shows the efforts of the Vietnamese Government in concretizing the 2017 Planning Law by defining the content and scope of regional planning for sand and river gravel. At the same time, Decree 23/2020 / ND-CP also has many specific and clear provisions on conditions and responsibilities of enterprises in exploration, exploitation, gathering, transportation, business and use. Use sand and gravel in the river bed. This not only contributes to setting a clear and specific legal framework against the current problem of illegal exploitation of sand and gravel in the river bed, but also creates conditions for this exploitation activity to be effective and avoid waste according to the plan.