Standards on solid waste management facilities and public restrooms in Vietnam

Hello, Lawnet would like to answer as follows:

1. General requirements in Vietnam

According to QCVN 07-9:2016/BXD, general requirements for solid waste management works and specific public toilets are:

- Solid waste management works must be consistent with construction planning, urban planning, and solid waste management planning approved by competent authorities.

- Public toilets must comply with construction planning and urban planning approved by competent authorities.

- Solid waste management works and public toilets must ensure sustainability, stability, and environmental hygiene requirements throughout their useful life (lifespan) according to current legal regulations.

- Environmentally safe distances of transfer stations, solid waste, and sludge treatment facilities comply with QCXDVN 01:2008/BXD.

Maintenance and repair requirements

Solid waste management works, items, and public toilets must be periodically maintained and repaired throughout their useful lives to ensure their functionality.

2. Standards on solid waste management works in Vietnam

According to QCVN 07-9:2016/BXD, regulations on solid waste management projects are as follows:

Solid waste management works include: transfer stations and solid waste and sludge treatment facilities (recycling, incineration, burial, or other types of treatment technology).

Technical regulations for solid waste transfer stations

- Solid waste transfer station includes:

+ Roofs, retaining walls;

+ Technical infrastructure: yards, internal roads, car wash, water supply, wastewater collection, and treatment;

+ Area for classifying and storing recycled materials;

+ Executive building, administrative office, and other auxiliary works.

- Solid waste transfer stations must ensure fire and explosion prevention requirements; wastewater collection and treatment, and deodorant.

Biotechnology solid waste treatment facility

- Biotechnology is applied to organic solid waste that is easily biodegradable.

- The scale of a solid waste treatment facility using biotechnology is determined by the volume and proportion of organic components in the waste. Types of biotechnology applied in solid waste treatment include:

+ Biological composting with a natural or forced air supply; processing solid waste into microbial fertilizer;

+ Anaerobic or anaerobic biological composting processes solid waste into microbial fertilizer or converts it into biogas;

+ Biological composting, processing solid waste into fuel.

- Main functional areas:

+ Operating area: office, warehouse, chemistry room, living room, restroom;

+ Processing area: mechanical and electrical workshop, raw waste gathering house, equipment for cutting, grinding, sorting, mixing, fermenting, composting, refining humus, bagging, storage for recovered or recycled products from solid waste;

+ Technical infrastructure: gates, fences, roads, yards, parking lots, car wash bridges, water supply, wastewater and leachate collection and treatment, lighting, trees, water surface, landscape;

+ Land use ratio in biotechnology solid waste treatment facilities is determined according to Table 1.

Table 1. Land use ratio in solid waste treatment facilities

3. Standards for Public Restrooms

QCVN 07-9:2016/BXD stipulates technical standards for public toilets as follows:

- Requirements for public restrooms

+ Public toilets must be consistent with the general landscape of the area;

+ The minimum clearance height of public toilets is 2.4 m. The ratio of the area of windows to the floor area of a ground-level public toilet must not be less than 1:8 to ensure ventilation and natural light;

+ House materials and structures must ensure durability and stability requirements during operation and use. Floors and walls must be designed with waterproof materials, anti-slip floors, and convenience for cleaning;

+ Public toilets must have lighting, ventilation, sanitary equipment (toilet, urinal, sink), water supply system, wastewater collection, and a septic tank before being connected to the drainage system outside the building;

+ Public toilets must ensure accessibility for people with disabilities according to the requirements of QCVN 10:2014/BXD.

- Requirements for portable public toilets

+ House materials and structures must ensure durability, stability, safety during operation and use, and be convenient for transportation on the road;

+ Toilet room: clearance height is not less than 2.1 m, clearance size on the ground is not less than 1.0 m;

+ Having adequate sanitary, ventilation, and lighting equipment to ensure use and meet environmental hygiene requirements.

+ Ensuring access for people with disabilities according to the requirements of QCVN 10:2014/BXD.

- Management of sludge from public toilets

The cycle of desludging and collecting fecal sludge from public toilet septic tanks must not exceed 01 year. Sludge from public toilets must be collected and transported to a centralized treatment facility.

Best regards!