HANOI, June 3 (Xinhua) -- Under the blazing summer sun, farmers continue harvesting ripe golden rice in the fields of Trung Gia commune on the outskirts of Vietnam's capital Hanoi.
Local residents have witnessed firsthand how the once foul-smelling waste dumping site has been transformed into vast rice fields, all thanks to the Chinese-invested Soc Son waste-to-energy plant.
Nguyen Van Do, a local resident, recalled that household waste from across the city was once transported here, causing severe environmental pollution and undermining his family's health.
"The environment was heavily polluted with an awful stench, and there were swarms of flies and mosquitoes, especially in humid weather, which harmed the respiratory health of my wife, children and myself," Do said.
Do noted that most of the city's waste was previously hauled to landfills and piled up "as high as mountains." Thanks to the plant, his family no longer needs to hang mosquito nets during meals to ward off flies and mosquitoes.
The Soc Son waste-to-energy plant, invested in and operated by Chinese- invested firm Hanoi Thien Y Environmental Energy Joint Stock Company, commenced operation in 2022. It feeds electricity into Vietnam's national grid and currently processes approximately 5,000 tons of Hanoi's household waste every day.
Official data shows Hanoi, home to 8.8 million people, generates around 8,500 tons of household waste daily, of which 7,600 tons are centrally collected and treated.
Once delivered to the plant, massive amounts of municipal waste are lifted by large steel grapples for a seven-day fermentation process before being sent to incineration chambers. Intense heat generates steam that drives turbines to produce electricity.
Pham Thanh Phuong, a technical department engineer at the plant and a graduate of Hanoi University of Science and Technology, told Xinhua that he had zero prior knowledge of Chinese language and waste-to-energy incineration technology when he first joined the team.
After multiple rounds of trial operations under the guidance of Chinese experts, Phuong still remembers the excitement of launching a generator independently for the first time.
"I was truly delighted at that moment. I was the first operator to complete the whole waste-to-power process and put the new system into full operation," Phuong said.
Having worked at the plant for six years, Phuong said the model not only addresses the city's environmental woes, but also delivers energy benefits, bolsters national and local economic development, and facilitates technological exchanges and transfers between the two countries.
Beyond waste-to-power conversion, the plant has also become a practical training base for Vietnamese environmental majors.
Dao Ngoc Diep, a third-year student majoring in environment, health and safety, said the facility has enabled her to acquire plenty of professional knowledge relevant to her academic field.
"I used to think waste burning would only produce emissions. But after visiting this plant, I learned that waste incineration can generate power while cutting emissions without causing environmental pollution," she said, adding that the plant's clean and modern environment exceeded her expectations.
For the 2026-2030 period, Hanoi aims to achieve 100 percent standardized collection and treatment of urban household waste, and lower the landfill rate to below 10 percent via advanced waste-to-energy technologies.
Li Ke, general director of the plant's operating company, said Chinese enterprises have built global leadership in solid waste management through years of technological innovation and practical experience.
"We are fully confident and technologically capable of sharing our technologies and experiences with other developing countries, enabling green energy to deliver environmental benefits and improve people's livelihoods," Li said. ■