Investing in closed water channels from Yen Lap Lake

The 26.5km long Yen Lap main canal carries water from Yen Lap lake to the communes in Ha Nam area (Quang Yen town) to supply water for domestic water production plants and irrigation for the entire town. Being an open canal, running through many densely populated areas, garbage is often thrown into the canal, polluting the water source and posing a risk of drowning accidents.

Yen Lap main canal leads water from Yen Lap lake to communes in Ha Nam area (Quang Yen town).

Yen Lap main canal was invested in construction in 1978. On average, each year the canal supplies irrigation water for thousands of hectares of cultivation and nearly 33 million m³ of domestic water in Quang Yen town. Currently, all raw water sources supplied to Quang Yen Water Enterprise, Nam Hoa, Phong Hai, Lien Vi, Song Khoai, Hiep Hoa water stations and units in industrial zones are taken from Yen Lap lake surface water through the main canal N1 originating from Yen Lap lake, Minh Thanh ward to Tien Phong commune. The water supply connection system from the main canal to the reservoir (sedimentation lake) of the factories are all installed with pipeline systems or built closed ditches, the rest are open canals.

Due to long-term investment, the canal has degraded in some locations. The surface of the canal is 5-7m wide, many sections are deep enough to cover a person's head, the water flows rapidly, the banks are slippery, and are a danger to children. Mr. Nguyen Duy Hoa (Minh Thanh ward) shared: I have small children at home. Outside of school hours, when the children are at home, I close the gate, and when they go out, I have to be supervised by adults, because the children are busy playing and can fall into the canal at any time. We hope that the State will pay attention to investing in sealing this canal, ensuring safety for the people as well as the water environment.

In recent times, Yen Lap Irrigation Company Limited has coordinated with the locality to regularly arrange staff to monitor along the canal, establish a canal cleaning team, and sign a commitment to ensure environmental hygiene with surrounding households. However, because the canal is open, running through many densely populated areas and production areas, the situation of dumping waste into the canal still occurs. Some households also graze buffalo and cows near the canal, and livestock wastewater flows directly into the canal when it rains. Some households with production areas near the canal arbitrarily divert water from the canal to ponds, so at times water from the ponds flows back into the canal, affecting the quality of the water source.

The open canal runs through many residential areas, posing a potential risk of drowning accidents.

Quang Yen currently has 5 industrial parks: Dong Mai, Nam Tien Phong, Bac Tien Phong, Song Khoai, Bach Dang, attracting thousands of workers, so the demand for water for daily life and production is very large. Therefore, sealing the canal is very necessary. At many meetings, voters of the town have proposed considering solidification, investing in underground construction, covering the surface of the canal, ensuring hygiene, security and safety, but it has not been resolved. The above situation not only affects people's lives, but also poses a potential risk of water insecurity.

To resolve voters' petitions and implement the direction of the Provincial People's Committee, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has sent a document requesting the People's Committee of Quang Yen town to include the Project of upgrading and repairing Yen Lap lake; closing the Yen Lap canal system into operation. in the list of medium-term public investment projects and works for the period 2026-2030 . Through that to ensure water quality, meet people's need for clean water, reduce the risk of drowning accidents for children in the area.

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