Dien Chau invests 2.5 billion VND to upgrade drought prevention works for spring crop

(Baonghean) - The weather is getting more and more severe, drought not only occurs in the summer-autumn crop but in Dien Chau many spring crop areas are also suffering from drought.

Earlier this year, Dien Chau started upgrading Bau Gao dam in Dien Lam commune with a total cost of over 10 billion VND. This dam has a reserve of nearly 1 million m3 of water, providing irrigation water for 70 hectares of rice in Bac Lam hamlet. Currently, the construction teams are urgently working on items such as reinforcing the dike body, expanding the dam surface, raising the height, repairing the culvert, and spillway... The contractor is determined to complete the project by the end of May this year to ensure water for summer-autumn production. Thus, up to now, in the mountainous commune of Dien Lam, 5/7 dams have been invested in upgrading and building, basically ensuring nearly 1,100 hectares of rice for the whole year in Dien Lam.

Mr. Ngo Sy Thang - a resident of Hamlet 9, Dien Lam Commune said: After the dams were upgraded, the amount of water stored was guaranteed to not leak, there was enough water for people to produce, so he was very excited, the entire converted area that was previously ineffective has now been 100% planted.

Youth Union of Dien Ky commune dredges canals before entering spring crop production. Photo: Mai Giang

Along with the state budget invested in upgrading dams, entering the spring crop this year, Dien Chau district has invested 2.5 billion VND to focus on repairing and upgrading many important internal irrigation works such as: Repairing pumping station 18A in Dien Thap commune, Dien Tho pumping station with a cost of more than 1 billion VND; Upgrading irrigation canals and pumping stations in Dien Tan and Dien Ngoc communes with a cost of more than 900 million VND; Upgrading internal canals in Dien Binh commune with a cost of 550 million VND...

Along with that, the district mobilized nearly 98,000 people to work on irrigation, thereby dredging nearly 85,000m3 of mud and soil in irrigation canals and drainage canals; building and repairing canals and banks of more than 61,000m2, clearing, cutting grass, and collecting duckweed over more than 389,000m2...

In the past 5 years, Dien Chau district has promoted investment in many projects serving production such as: Renovating and upgrading 10 dams with a total value of nearly 50 billion VND, which has actively contributed to preventing irrigation water loss as well as flood drainage; Mobilizing thousands of billions of VND to upgrade 60 pumping stations, consolidating more than 200km of irrigation and drainage canals and nearly 60km of river and sea dykes, contributing to preventing salinity for production and ensuring the safety of people's lives. Thanks to that, if previously Dien Chau had about 1,000 hectares that had to be regularly converted or abandoned due to drought and flooding, now this area is only about 200 hectares.

Along with upgrading irrigation works, focusing on changing crop structure and applying scientific and technological advances in production is also a focus of localities. In Dien Hanh commune, saving water is a way for the commune to proactively fight drought right from the beginning of the season. The way the people here do it is that 100% of the area with more than 300 hectares is cultivated according to the SRI method to supply water at one time. In addition, the commune has also invested nearly 30 million VND to repair 2 pumping stations, ensuring 24/24 operation, serving the members of the commune to ensure production progress.

In the fields of hamlets 1, 2, 3 of Dien My commune, previously all rice was grown, but in the second spring crop this year, they have been converted to peanuts, from 15 hectares in 2016 to 30 hectares this crop. This is a correct policy, bringing the most obvious effect in converting the crop structure in Dien Chau, not only reducing the burden of water shortage in a commune at the end of the canal but also doubling the economic efficiency.

Dredging canals to serve spring crop production in Dien Lam (Dien Chau). Photo: Mai Giang

In Dien Loc commune, in addition to focusing on repairing the pumping station system, intra-field canals, and developing water regulation plans, the commune has proactively planned more than 50 hectares of single-variety rice fields since the beginning of the crop. This is also a water-saving solution to cope with drought because the sowing and flowering times are at the same time, so focusing on supplying water at one time will help save water throughout the production process.

Due to the drought coming earlier and more severely, right from the beginning of the season, Dien Chau has proactively implemented many solutions such as: Mobilizing 39 communes and towns to repair and dredge the entire canal and irrigation system to prevent water loss; Structuring short-term crop varieties with good drought resistance, directing communes to intensively cultivate according to the SRI method with an area of ​​over 9,000 hectares; Converting more than 200 hectares of areas at risk of water shortage to growing peanuts and corn...

Dien Quang pumping stations bring water to the fields to ensure spring crop production. Photo: Mai Giang.

For the colored fields, communes are encouraged to effectively promote the system of drilled wells to provide water for the colored crops in the fields. Currently, people have brought electricity to the fields, invested in more than 6,000 pumps, and more than 4,000 drilled wells in the fields to ensure water for the colored crop areas.

Mr. Le The Hieu - Head of the Department of Agriculture of Dien Chau district said: "Currently, we have actively implemented a plan to combat drought and especially in the production structure, we have structured the varieties with shorter durations than other crops, using water economically, besides implementing the solution of shallow - exposed - exposed irrigation to thoroughly save water, maintaining a stable water level to ensure irrigation for spring crop production".

Mai Giang