Flooding on the 5km-long Le Van Luong Street in Nha Be District. (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNA) - HCM City authorities arebeing urged to develop a master plan for flood control as new flood-prone areashave emerged and flooding has re-occurred in others.
Hoang Minh Tri, deputy head of the Institute forDevelopment Studies, said the city has allocated funds to develop waterdrainage systems and waste water treatment. Though some of the solutionsstopped flooding, some areas in the city face flooding again, he said.
He said the city must reassess previous solutions,discover shortcomings, and come up with a master plan for flood control.
Tri spoke at a conference held in HCM City on November24 to review the flooding situation over the past 40 years.
Do Tan Long, head of the division for water drainageat the city’s Steering Centre of the Urban Flood Control Programme, said thecity had created a master plan for the drainage system to 2020.
Under the plan, the city is upgrading or building6,000 kilometres of drains and 12 waste water treatment plants. In addition,5,075 kilometres of canals are being upgraded.
As of now, 4,167 of the 6,000 kilometres of drainshave been built, and the construction on first phase of one waste watertreatment plant has finished.
The city will also begin construction of three ofreservoirs, he said.
The master plan for drainage systems also includesconstruction of 10 drains for control of tides. Construction on one of thedrains, Nhieu Loc-Thi Nghe, has been completed.
Long said the Vietnam Fatherland Front and other statepolitical and social organisations are helping to improve public awarenessabout the need to stop throwing rubbish into canals.
These groups are helping to supervise parts of thecity flood-control strategy, he added.
Dr Nguyen Ky Phung, deputy head of the city’sDepartment of Science and Technology, said the city should focus on dredgingcanals to avoid blockage and illegal encroachment near or on canals should bestopped as soon as possible.
The city has 3,020 canals with a total length of 5,047kilometres, he said, adding that they play an important role in regulatingwater and temperatures.
Recovering green areas and replacing sidewalks withgrass or a special kind of cement that drains rain water were two other solutionssuggested at the conference.
According to Secretary of the municipal PartyCommittee Dinh La Thang, who wrote an article published in Sai Gon Giai Phong(Liberated Saigon) newspaper on November 21, the city has low terrain and isaffected by climate change and rising sea levels. This has led to heavier rainsand higher tides in recent years.
The city’s priority objective to 2020 will be solvingflooding in the city centre and parts of five outlying areas covering a totalarea of 550 square kilometres, with a population of 6.5 million.
Between now and 2018, the city aims to eliminateflooding caused by heavy rains on eight roads.
Projects for 13 other regularly flooded roads willalso be implemented, while drains in 60 alleys, which are often flooded afterrains, will be improved.
In addition, the city will speed up the rate ofprogress of construction on three waste water treatment plants, including ThamLuong-Ben Cat with capacity of 131,000 cu.m per day and Nhieu Loc-Thi Nghe andthe Binh Hung plant with increased capacity of 469,000 cu.m per day.-VNA
Hoang Minh Tri, deputy head of the Institute forDevelopment Studies, said the city has allocated funds to develop waterdrainage systems and waste water treatment. Though some of the solutionsstopped flooding, some areas in the city face flooding again, he said.
He said the city must reassess previous solutions,discover shortcomings, and come up with a master plan for flood control.
Tri spoke at a conference held in HCM City on November24 to review the flooding situation over the past 40 years.
Do Tan Long, head of the division for water drainageat the city’s Steering Centre of the Urban Flood Control Programme, said thecity had created a master plan for the drainage system to 2020.
Under the plan, the city is upgrading or building6,000 kilometres of drains and 12 waste water treatment plants. In addition,5,075 kilometres of canals are being upgraded.
As of now, 4,167 of the 6,000 kilometres of drainshave been built, and the construction on first phase of one waste watertreatment plant has finished.
The city will also begin construction of three ofreservoirs, he said.
The master plan for drainage systems also includesconstruction of 10 drains for control of tides. Construction on one of thedrains, Nhieu Loc-Thi Nghe, has been completed.
Long said the Vietnam Fatherland Front and other statepolitical and social organisations are helping to improve public awarenessabout the need to stop throwing rubbish into canals.
These groups are helping to supervise parts of thecity flood-control strategy, he added.
Dr Nguyen Ky Phung, deputy head of the city’sDepartment of Science and Technology, said the city should focus on dredgingcanals to avoid blockage and illegal encroachment near or on canals should bestopped as soon as possible.
The city has 3,020 canals with a total length of 5,047kilometres, he said, adding that they play an important role in regulatingwater and temperatures.
Recovering green areas and replacing sidewalks withgrass or a special kind of cement that drains rain water were two other solutionssuggested at the conference.
According to Secretary of the municipal PartyCommittee Dinh La Thang, who wrote an article published in Sai Gon Giai Phong(Liberated Saigon) newspaper on November 21, the city has low terrain and isaffected by climate change and rising sea levels. This has led to heavier rainsand higher tides in recent years.
The city’s priority objective to 2020 will be solvingflooding in the city centre and parts of five outlying areas covering a totalarea of 550 square kilometres, with a population of 6.5 million.
Between now and 2018, the city aims to eliminateflooding caused by heavy rains on eight roads.
Projects for 13 other regularly flooded roads willalso be implemented, while drains in 60 alleys, which are often flooded afterrains, will be improved.
In addition, the city will speed up the rate ofprogress of construction on three waste water treatment plants, including ThamLuong-Ben Cat with capacity of 131,000 cu.m per day and Nhieu Loc-Thi Nghe andthe Binh Hung plant with increased capacity of 469,000 cu.m per day.-VNA
VNA
