Environmental Management for Traditional Craft Villages in Vietnam

Craft villages are Vietnamese rural villages with existing craft and non-farming activities drawing the participation of at least 30 percent of all households and making at least 50 percent of the village's total income. Out of the total of about 1,450 craft villages, 228 are traditional villages that have a long history and make products that are unique and typically Vietnamese. Various environmental challenges in craft villages stem from the fact that recent rural environmental management has not caught up with economic development. The scale of craft production is rapidly increasing, while investment for infrastructure is still poor. As a result, wastes exceed the natural cleaning capacity of the environment, causing serious pollution and affecting the health of community residents. Environmental conditions and environmental impacts in craft villages have some common characteristics. First, the pollution is typically concentratedly in one rural area (hamlet, village, commune, etc.) This area contains numerous pollution point sources (small enterprises) that directly affect the surroundings, including residential areas. They therefore impose direct environmental risks on the public. Second, craft-village pollution problems are more serious in the workplace (micro-climate). Almost all Environmental Management for