Lowering greenhouse gas emissions related to transport is one of the priorities of the transport sector's climate change action plan for the 2011-15 period.

Deputy director of the Ministry of Transport's Environment Department Tran Anh Duong revealed the action plan at a workshop jointly hosted by the ministry and the British embassy in Ha Noi last Friday.

The ministry will co-ordinate work to inspect and control emissions from motor vehicles, develop mass transit public transport in urban areas and supervise the implementation of the Law on Economical and Efficient Use of Energy in the transport sector.

Also during this period, the application of low-carbon technologies and renewable energies will be adopted in a pilot programme. A number of relevant projects have included using bio-diesel in Viet Nam's railway sector and experiments using solar and wind power in conjunction with diesel generators at railway stations.

To further understand the effects of climate change, a series of projects will examine the impact of greenhouse gases on roads, railways, land, waterways, maritime areas, infrastructure development and transport.

Financial support was being sought domestically, but mobilising international resources would also be an important part of the transport ministry's strategy, Duong said.

The United Kingdom is one of several countries willing to co-operate in this field, as British Ambassador to Viet Nam Antony Stokes said, "This is a great opportunity for us to work together in a new area of green transport, which will not only help address climate change but also be an economic stimulus."

Speaking to reporters at the workshop, Stokes said, "This is an agenda that shows the transport ministry has already begun dealing with climate change in the transport sector.

"Now they plan for more green vehicles in Ha Noi and HCM City, that's good news that gives us an opportunity to look at how British expertise will help move that agenda forward in a successful process."

HCM City was the first major city in Viet Nam to roll out 21 ‘green' buses which began using efficient compressed natural gas last August.

Initial observations showed that CNG-fuelled buses emitted much less amounts of greenhouse gases compared to their diesel-fuelled counterparts, with carbon dioxide lowered by 20 per cent, carbon monoxide by 63.5 per cent and hydrocarbon by 63 per cent.

Trinh Quoc Binh from the city's transport department said in order to promote the wider use of eco-friendly buses, the ministry should submit to the Government a proposal asking for tax exemptions for imports of CNG buses and a stable supply of CNG, priced at 60-65 per cent of diesel fuel, currently used for public transport.

The city plans to put 350 CNG buses into services by the end of 2015 and will continue to develop programmes incorporating green vehicles.

Source: VNS