Oyster farming obstructs flood drainage in Hoang Mai town
(Baonghean.vn) - Currently, Hoang Mai town has no water area planning for oyster farming. All farming rafts are gathered on Hoang Mai river, affecting the traffic of ships and boats and the ability to drain floods.
Hoang Mai River is 18 km long, located downstream of Vuc Mau Lake flood drainage system, and is a waterway for boats in Hoang Mai town. This is also a place for anchoring, avoiding, and taking shelter during the rainy and stormy season. On this river system, Hoang Mai town does not plan to raise oysters.
However, in recent times, many households in communes and wards in the area, including Quynh Lap commune, Quynh Phuong ward, Quynh Di, Mai Hung, and Quynh Thien, have illegally built oyster farms and rafts on the river, greatly affecting flood drainage capacity, as well as hindering waterway traffic and seafood exploitation activities.
Coming to Mai Hung ward, standing along Hoang Mai river, one can observe hundreds of oyster farming rafts with bamboo stakes placed densely on the water surface on both banks. At low tide, the surface of the water reveals a field of bamboo stakes for oyster farming, protruding like a field of spikes. When the tide rises, these stakes are submerged in water, becoming a "trap" for boats, posing many dangers.
Mr. Vu Xuan Thuong, an oyster farmer in Yen Phu block, Mai Hung ward, said: My family raises 4 oyster racks (over 8,000 oyster strings, with an area of nearly 1,000m2). Currently, the local government has mobilized propaganda and dismantled the oyster rafts due to their impact on the waterway. My family hopes to receive financial support from all levels and sectors to dismantle the rafts, because we have spent a lot of money on driving bamboo stakes and breeding oysters.
Mr. Le Huu Trung - Chairman of Mai Hung Ward People's Committee said: Currently, Mai Hung Ward has over 160 households participating in oyster farming with a total oyster farming area of nearly 30,000m2.2, mainly for people to drive stakes and build bamboo trellises on both sides of the river. Recently, Mai Hung Ward People's Committee has repeatedly encouraged people to dismantle oyster rafts to clear the Mai Giang River. However, the difficulty is that oyster farming has been around for a long time, and people have suggested that if it is dismantled, the authorities need to have policies to support career conversion. The ward has also asked people to commit not to expand oyster rafts.
At this time, Hoang Mai town is implementing embankments on some sections of Hoang Mai river to clear the flow, however the section throughQuynh Di ward is currently having 6 households raising oysters.
The representative of the People's Committee of Quynh Di Ward added: 6 households raising oysters on the Mai Giang River, in Quynh Di Ward are from Mai Hung Ward. Quynh Di Ward has coordinated to propagate and mobilize 6 households to dismantle their oyster cages, however, currently the households have not dismantled them, causing difficulties for the construction of embankments through the area..
Mr. Hoang Ngoc Thuy - Head of Economic Department, Hoang Mai Town People's Committee said: The massive spontaneous oyster farming by people in Hoang Mai town in recent years has hindered flood drainage for Hoang Mai river when Mau lake discharges water, making it difficult for over 1,000 fishing boats and ships to enter and exit. To deal with the illegal oyster farming on the river, for many years Hoang Mai town has continuously propagated, mobilized organizations to sign commitments and requested violating households to voluntarily dismantle oyster racks, bottom traps... to protect the inland waterway traffic infrastructure so as not to hinder ships and boats from entering and leaving the shore to anchor and avoid storms; drain floods and supply water for aquaculture on Hoang Mai river and Mo river.
The Chairman of the People's Committee of each commune and ward is responsible to the Chairman of the People's Committee of the town if new illegal aquaculture platforms and rafts are created in the area under their management. However, most people still try to stay and refuse to dismantle the illegal oyster platforms on the river.
Mr. Hoang Ngoc Thuy added: ForSix households illegally raising oysters on the Hoang Mai River in Quynh Di Ward, the district, are continuing to mobilize people to voluntarily dismantle their oyster rafts, and are also developing a plan for enforcement if the households do not comply.
