(VientianeTimes)The future of tourism and living standards are top of a list of concerns raised by a group of officials warning of environmental degradation.

Social-Cultural Affairs Committee Vice Chairman Prof. Dr Phonethep Pholsena of the National Assembly expressed his concern over the issue last week after hearing about the problems through the assembly's public hotline.

Prof. Dr Phonethep was speaking at a meeting at the National Assembly in response to issues raised over the hotline.

He said he is particularly concerned about the impacts of businesses that dump waste into the Ngum, Theun, and Mekong rivers.

“The percentage of people infected with parasites is high, especially along the Ngum and Theun rivers,” he said. “The restaurants all along there simply throw their waste into the water.”

“On a visit to Sen village in Khong district, I also saw an enormous amount of plastic bags and dirty waste simply being thrown into the Mekong. By doing that, we are destroying our own livelihoods.”

Dr Phonethep also expressed concern about air pollution from machines, automobiles, and firewood which he said needs to be given a more prominent position on the national agenda. “Exhaust from automobiles is devastating for the environment and for our health, but most people are simply not aware of this. It's also things like the use of rubber slippers or tyres to stoke up a fire,” he said.

As a measure for environmental protection in industry, Dr Phonethep suggested an environment tax be imposed, with the revenue generated to be reinvested back into protection and education campaigns.

“Why do we not establish an environment tax in a similar system to carbon credits for businesses that are polluting and destroying our environment?” he suggested.

In response to the issue, especially the overuse of plastic bags, Environment Department Director Dr Viengsavanh Duangsavanh assured that the department and involved units were campaigning in schools and among the general public.

“One initiative is that we are encouraging people who use public transport not to throw waste out of windows. We have asked the media to be on the lookout for this so offenders could be named and shamed, and fined,” she said.

This scheme is now being carried out in Vientiane as a pilot project, with plans to expand it to the provinces.

Dr Viengsavanh said she wanted to tighten coordination between environment units on business registration processes to help solve the problems from the very beginning.

She said the department i s currently drafting a decree that will mean new businesses will have to meet strict environmental standards before they are allowed to operate.

“We have plans and measures for control. If any project does not have the necessary documentation they will not be allowed to operate,” she said.

“We are considering the inclusion of a financial guarantee in the law, which is why the process has been slow.”