Rubbish pile-up in Ho Chi Minh city

Vietnamese oficials say a blockade at a rubbish tip in Ho Chi Minh city has caused a build-up of more than 4,000 tonnes of household refuse in the city's streets, creating a major health hazard.

People with homes near the tip in the Hoc Mon district, which receives rubbish from the city's five million inhabitants, have been preventing hundreds of trucks from entering the facility to demand compensation for their living conditions.

Following negotiations on Tuesday, the trucks have been granted temporary access while details of compensation are worked out. Correspondents say the incident is one of many which reflect the growing environmental impact of economic development in Asia.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service