Hanoi authorities have installed aquatic rafts on To Lich River to help revive one of the most polluted rivers in the country.

HanoiWater Drainage has placed 38 clusters of aquatic rafts on a trial basisin a 6km-section of the river running from Hoang Quoc Viet street inCau Giay district to Nga Tu So street in Dong Da district.

Therafts are made from pontoons and wood planks, with each cluster being150-200m from each other. Each raft is anchored with ropes to stop themfrom floating down river during storms or floods. Also, aquatic plantsare planted on the rafts.

Deputy Director of the company, HoangThe Hung, said aquatic plants play a role in cleaning polluted water,due to their roots and bodies that filter water, converting pollutedcompounds into biomass and releasing oxygen into the water.

Theseaquatic rafts are low cost solutions that have life spans of up to fouryears, he said. They will then be repaired or replaced by new rafts, headded.

The rafts were earlier installed to clean 15 lakes in the city, including Ngoc Khanh lake, Giang Vo lake and Truc Bach lake.

NguyenThi Huong, a resident living in Lang street in Dong Da district, saidthe water in the river emits a strong odour as a result of wastedischarged from surrounding residents.

The installation of theaquatic rafts are expected to clean the environment, creating betterconditions for local residents to travel along the river's banks,particularly for those who come to exercise in the morning andafternoon, she said.

Luong Van Hoc, a resident in Nguyen DinhHoan street in Cau Giay district, said it is necessary to installaquatic rafts to reduce environmental pollution in the river, and thismodel should be expanded to help clean the water while making the rivermore beautiful.

To Lich River is considered by ecologists to be a‘dead' river because it has been severely polluted by the dumping ofthousands of cubic metres of sewage water into it each day.-VNA