Mr. Son: People are not confident using tap water.

(Baonghean)For the past four years, Mr. Le Quang Vinh's family in Block 5, Anh Son Town, has been relying on well water and rainwater for drinking and daily activities. Each month, their tap water consumption fluctuates around 4 cubic meters, equivalent to approximately 20,000 VND per month.

Mr. Vinh stated, "Tap water used for brewing tea has a white film floating on the surface, and the water at the bottom of the cup is cloudy and less palatable than well water, so my family only uses tap water for washing." He illustrated this by comparing two bowls of equally bright white water, one with tap water and the other with well water. The bowl with tap water gradually turned cloudy white, while the bowl with well water remained significantly clearer. This is a common complaint from residents of Block 5 regarding the quality of tap water.

Anh Son Town Kindergarten is one of the schools that uses a significant amount of tap water from the Anh Son Water Supply Station, averaging nearly 90 cubic meters per month, and even up to 120 cubic meters per month during the summer. The school currently has 240 children and 22 teachers and staff, all of whom spend their entire day at the school.



The town's kindergarten invested in a water filter for its use.

Principal Nguyen Thi Be said: “When we first started using tap water, we found that boiling it resulted in a white film like lime, and the water turned cloudy, making it unsuitable for direct consumption. Feeling uneasy, for nearly five years now, the school has invested in a rainwater tank and a water filter to serve the children, teachers, and staff. The filter operates continuously throughout the day, and even the cleaning staff have to filter the tap water before using it for cooking.”

The Anh Son Water Plant currently supplies water to over 800 customers in 6 out of 7 town blocks, Phuc Son Hamlet 1, and Thach Son Hamlet 2; the average water supply capacity is over 500 cubic meters per day; the water price is calculated at 5,700 VND/cubic meter for residents and over 8,000 VND/cubic meter for administrative and public service agencies. During the hot season, the plant operates at full capacity. After more than 12 years of supplying water to meet consumer needs, the water from the plant, according to testing results from the Food Safety and Hygiene Sub-Department, meets the permissible standards for domestic use and promptly satisfies the water demand in the area.

However, upon investigation, the town's People's Committee leaders stated that the initial plan to exploit the Lam River's water source to supply the town's residents was not feasible. Instead, they chose to extract groundwater from the Lien Co hill area (near the district's political training center). The depth of the wells could reach the rock quarry and rocky terrain, making long-term contamination of the extracted water with alum and lime almost unavoidable.

Through discussions with the management staff of the Anh Son town water supply station and the town's People's Committee leaders, it was learned that: Due to the current situation of groundwater pollution, Anh Son district has developed a plan for a project to upgrade the water treatment plant and change the water source; the project is invested in by the District People's Committee. The project aims to ensure water supply along National Highway 7, through Hoi Son, and the cement factory area. However, for nearly four years, the project has only progressed to the stage of selecting an extraction area at Kim Nhan hill. The reason is that the cost of building the upgrade and treatment of the new water source is too high, the contribution from the people is too high, and without government support, the implementation of the project remains a difficult problem.

Luong Mai