Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha inspects the fresh water supply situation in Tien Giang

On April 7, a working delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha and leaders of ministries and branches inspected the situation of domestic water supply for people in Tien Giang province. This is a locality where for many days people have had to collect water for domestic use due to the prolonged severe drought.

In Gia Thuan commune, Go Cong Dong district, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha inspected free public water taps and visited people in the area.

At the time of inspection, the public water taps were flowing quite strongly, and there were not as many people coming to get water as in the previous days. A commune leader said that there are currently 5 public taps for people in the commune to get water for use. In addition, the commune has established 3 water transport teams to support poor households, lonely elderly people... who cannot afford to go to the water transport.

z5324640125620_120d9c4763c2044660c994eaae1e21f0-43ff6b5300ba701246604b3329fb2cc8.jpg — Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha inspects the fresh water supply situation for people. (Photo: Doan Xa).

Next, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha visited a local household to check the water storage situation and was informed by the residents that thanks to the free public water dispensers, they no longer had the "thirst" for water as before. Local residents also shared with the Deputy Prime Minister that the tap water in this area did not flow or flowed very weakly, so they had to collect free public water for use in recent days.

Reporting to the working delegation, Mr. Pham Van Trong, Vice Chairman of Tien Giang Provincial People's Committee, added that the characteristic of Go Cong Dong district and a part of Go Cong town is that there is no fresh water, including wells. Therefore, the province has invested in the BOO Dong Tam Water Plant to bring fresh water to this area. Because the water pipe system is not uniform throughout the area, every year, this area often experiences local water shortages.

Next, Mr. Nguyen Van Vinh, Chairman of Tien Giang Provincial People's Committee, said that Tien Giang is a province bordering the East Sea, and saltwater intrusion has come to the province in three directions from the Vam Co Tay River, along the Tien River and the Ham Luong River. However, due to proactive measures to prevent drought and salinity early, up to now, the western districts have still protected their fruit growing areas, and rice and vegetable areas are still safe.

Regarding domestic water supply, according to Mr. Vinh, the western districts have enough domestic water. The eastern area receives water from Dong Tam Water Plant, bringing down about 70,000 m3/day and night, combined with on-site production. At the same time, the province has also operated 6 backup wells, with a capacity of 10,000 m3/day and night. However, it is now the peak of the hot season, the demand for water has increased, and the water source in canals and ponds in the fields has been exhausted. Most of the water supply stations are operating normally, some stations have reduced production capacity or stopped water supply due to lack of raw water, leading to a shortage of about 25,000 m3/day and night in the eastern districts.

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha also asked provincial leaders to solve the problem of the clean water network not reaching households, causing local water shortages. The province needs to re-plan to avoid dispersion and focus on effective investment. In addition, Tien Giang must also invest in industrial development to solve the water shortage.

People in Tien Giang go to get fresh water for use.

On the same day, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha inspected the construction progress of Nguyen Tan Thanh sluice gate (Chau Thanh district, Tien Giang). The project is currently at about 82% progress and will be completed in July 2024. This is one of the important irrigation projects in Tien Giang province with saltwater prevention, creating conditions for people in the area to have fresh water for use and irrigation after completion.

Here, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha highly appreciated the efforts of local authorities, investors and contractors. At the same time, he requested investors and contractors to continue to speed up the construction progress and strive to shorten the progress.

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