People's anxiety about flood discharge on the banks of Hieu River
(Baonghean) - Since the Chau Thang hydropower project in Quy Chau district came into operation, people in the affected areas of Chau Tien and Chau Thang communes have had to live in fear and anxiety about unsafe travel, being isolated, having their houses, fields and gardens sunk and "swallowed up" by the river.
Unusually large floods
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| Chau Thang spillway has quite a high traffic density. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
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| Chau Thang Hydropower Plant. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
But in the past 2 years, when Chau Thang Hydropower Plant came into operation, the traffic here has changed a lot. From July to November 2017 - 2018, storms combined with the hydropower plant's flood discharge caused the spillway to be flooded many times.
The water level rises and flows strongly, exceeding the spillway by 1.2m - 1.5m. There are about 5 - 6 serious floods each year, each lasting 2 - 3 days.
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| Floodwaters over Chau Thang spillway. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
Mr. Luong Van Luan (51 years old), in Chieng Ban 1 village, said: Before the hydroelectric plant's flood discharge, the water level only reached the knees and receded within less than a day. Now, if people in the 6 villages on the South bank have to go to the district and unfortunately return late, they have to ask to stay with acquaintances in the 2 villages on the North bank for a few days.
Last night, August 3rd, the factory released flood water, I also had to sleep outside for a day... On the contrary, on this side, if someone gets sick and gets caught in the flood, they have to endure the pain, hold on, and wait for the water to recede before going to the medical station for examination and treatment.
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| Protecting and helping people cross the spillway when floodwaters rise. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
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| Mr. Nguyen Van Dung, Chairman of Chau Thang Commune People's Committee, described the overflowing water level during the flood discharge on August 3. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
The people of the commune have suggested upgrading the spillway bridge to a higher level or building a suspension bridge connecting Highway 48 with 6 villages on the southern bank. Upgrading the old bridge and building a new bridge requires a huge amount of funding. Chau Thang commune has compiled these opinions and submitted them to the People's Committee of Quy Chau district for consideration...
Riverbank erosion
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| Cracks at the foot of Chau Thang spillway bridge. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
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| Chau Thang Hydropower Plant releases floodwaters. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
Mr. Tran Huy Lac - Head of Minh Tien village - who has been attached to Chau Tien land for over 40 years, has witnessed many historic floods said: Even in the historic floods in 1988 and 2007, the water level of Hieu river rose to its highest level and flooded the road surface, but the area along the river did not have any landslides. In the past 2 years when the hydroelectric plant was in operation, more than 20 houses living next to the river, some houses were "swallowed" 10m by the river, some families lost up to 15m of land. Many gardens and livestock barns were swept away by the river.
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| Hydroelectric power plant discharges floodwaters causing landslides in riverbank areas. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
According to statistics from Chau Tien commune, over the past 3 years, the river has eroded and washed away more than 30 hectares of productive land and dozens of hectares of residential land. Many other areas of cultivated land have had to abandon rice cultivation and replace it with other crops.
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| Due to flood discharge activities, many agricultural areas have been abandoned. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
The water rose upstream, flooding the bridge into Hoa Tien village by 3-4 meters. Every time the factory released floodwaters, the local government had to work hard to arrange forces such as militia and police to be on duty on both sides of the bridge to prevent people from crossing. Currently, there are 172 households of the commune living on the banks of Hieu River.
Chau Thang Hydropower Plant has a designed capacity of 14MW, built in Quy Chau and Que Phong districts, in which the factory area is located in Quy Chau district. The factory has a reservoir with a length of more than 10km, an average width of 200m, and a reservoir capacity of 18 million m3. Chau Thang Hydropower Plant started storing water in February 2017; generating electricity in May 2017... On average, each year, the factory pays taxes to the State about 6.5 billion VND.
People still have to wait
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| Every time a low pressure system comes, hydroelectric power plants release floodwaters, making people live in insecurity. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
In addition, the company also participates in a number of other accompanying social programs and activities. A current reality among the people in the affected areas is that they "blame" the hydropower plant for causing disasters, and "blame" the authorities for not taking into account all the possible consequences that hydropower can cause when approving the project.
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| The banks of the Hieu River have been eroded in many sections. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
Regarding the phenomenon of cracks at Chau Thang spillway, the company will survey and consider specifically. When there is a policy to invest in upgrading the spillway or building a new suspension bridge across Hieu River, connecting the North and South banks of Chau Thang commune, if Quy Chau district has a written request, the company will report to the Board of Directors of the Corporation to have support for building a new bridge.
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| Road closure across Hoa Tien spillway bridge, Chau Tien commune when hydroelectric plant releases flood. Photo: Archive |
Currently, the district has submitted a request to build a dike to the province and the central government. As for upgrading and building a new bridge, it is clear that building a suspension bridge is inappropriate and inappropriate. Suspension bridges quickly deteriorate and break down, requiring large maintenance and repair costs. Meanwhile, building a new spillway bridge requires a huge amount of money, the district estimates it to be over 60 billion VND.
Quy Chau plans to include the construction of a new bridge in the medium-term public investment plan for the period 2020 - 2025 and wait for further instructions from the province. So, everyone, especially the people, are still waiting!
