Circular Economy - Integrative Settlement Planning: Phu Quoc Island, Vietnam

 

A sustainable future for Phu Quoc - Integrative settlement planning in a circular economy

Masterthesis by Kim Ha Tran

Can integrative settlement planning manage waste flows and minimise them in the long term? 

Using the city of Duong Dong on the island of Phu Quoc at the southern tip of Vietnam as an example, this thesis develops a zero-waste model that can be read as a guideline for planners. On Phu Quoc, rapid urbanisation due to a strong increase in visitor flows and rapid economic growth led to an increase in waste flows, as infrastructural measures were not expanded in time. Rudimentary, retroactively implemented waste management infrastructures are inefficient and lead to mostly illegal waste disposal (Kerber, 2018). In order to prevent such conflict situations in the future, early planning and the development of planning principles for a circular economy in urban areas are needed (United Nations, ESCAP 2019; Wehenpohl, 2003). Within this context, the work addresses the question of whether waste flows can be modified and minimised in the long term through integrative settlement planning in the sense of a CE. By moving away from a linear to a circular economy, cities can use the economic potential of waste. The zero waste approach as a strategy in a circular economy to avoid waste is examined in this regard.