03 environmental criteria for investment project classification in Vietnam

Specifically, according to Article 28 of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020 of Vietnam, environmental criteria for investment project classification include:

- Scale, capacity and type of production, business and service;

- Area of land, land with water surface, and sea used; scale of extraction of natural resources;

- Environmentally sensitive factors including high density residential areas; water source used for supply of domestic water; wildlife sanctuaries prescribed by the law on biodiversity and fisheries; types of forests prescribed by the law on forestry; other tangible cultural heritage and natural heritage sites; land meant for growing wet rice during 02 or more cropping seasons; important wetlands; migration and relocation requirements and other environmental sensitive factors.

According to the above environmental criteria, investment projects shall be classified into Group I, II, III and IV.

Group I investment projects are those that pose a high risk of adverse environmental impacts, including:

- Large-scale and capacity projects involved in types of production, business and services that are likely to cause environmental pollution; projects providing hazardous waste treatment service; projects involving import of scrap from foreign countries as production materials;

- Medium-scale and capacity projects involved in types of production, business and services with environmentally sensitive factors that are likely to cause; large-scale and capacity projects not involved in types of production, business and services with environmentally sensitive factors that are likely to cause environmental pollution;

- Large- or medium-scale projects using land, land with water surface and marine area with environmentally sensitive factors;

- Large- or medium-scale and capacity projects on extraction of minerals and water resources with environmentally sensitive factors;

- Projects requiring repurposing of land on at least medium scale with environmentally sensitive factors;

- Large-scale projects requiring migration and relocation.

View more details at the Law on Environmental Protection 2020 of Vietnam, effective from January 01, 2022.

Ty Na

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