HCM City (VNS/VNA) - The People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City is takingmeasures to restrict groundwater exploitation, which has led toincreased water pollution, flooding and subsidence.

Manyhouseholds and organisations have exceeded the permitted exploitation level,and the city now has an average subsidence rate of 4 centimetres a year,according to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

Tan Binh district’sAn Lac ward, for instance, has subsided 81.4 centimetres over the past 12years, the highest rate in the southern region.

The cityaims to reduce the quantity of groundwater exploitation to 100,000 cu.m aday by 2025.

Toprotect groundwater, the city has been filling up wells that aredamaged, unused or unlicensed. It has also encouraged households to fillup wells in areas where there is clean tap water.

In areaswhere the quality of groundwater does not meet standards, the citywill encourage households to use tap water.

Thecity’s Department of Natural Resources and Environment plans to stop granting licensesto 151 groundwater exploitation works that belong to companies,industrial parks and export processing zones. These works exploit atotal of 62,860 cu.m of water a day.

Alongwith construction projects built on weak land and transport activities,groundwater exploitation is one of the main causes of subsidence,according to the ministry.

HuynhThanh Nha, head of the department’s Water Resources, Mineral Resources, Sea andIsland Division, said the overexploitation of groundwaterhad changed the level of underground water and geological structure.

The cityhas about 100,000 bored wells that exploit about 700,000 cu.m of groundwater aday, he said.

The wellsbelong to households, companies, industrial parks, export processing zones andthe State-owned Sai Gon Water Supply Corporation (Sawaco).

Many householdswhich have access to tap water still use wells to save on watercosts.

The cityhas about 1.46 million water metres, but about 124,500 water metres have zeroconsumption value, meaning the owners of the 124,500 water metres are notusing tap water, according to Sawaco.

Sawaco’swater supply companies have increased investment in tap water networks andhave encouraged households with access to tap water to fill up theirwells.

NguyenVan Nen, who lives on Le Quang Dinh Street in Binh Thanh district, said hisfamily stopped using a bored well and switched to tap water after localauthorities explained that overexploitation of groundwaterwas contributing to subsidence in the city.-VNS/VNA