Things that need to be done immediately.

Nhat LanDecember 28, 2025

A few days after the end of the provincial People's Council's year-end regular session, we received information from the mountainous region of Tuong Duong about the siltation of the hydroelectric reservoir. According to this person, many villages and production areas in that region are located near the reservoirs of the hydroelectric power plants. Because the reservoirs have not been dredged for many years, siltation has occurred, becoming one of the causes of negative impacts, especially during the rainy season…

Contacting some acquaintances who were former officials of the old Tuong Duong district, it was learned that this is not a new problem. In previous years, Tuong Duong district had worked with the hydropower plants in the area, requesting solutions to address the sedimentation in the reservoir. However, this issue has not been completely resolved. This year's rainy season brought extremely heavy flooding, causing severe damage to people in the reservoir areas. Therefore, there have been complaints about issues related to the hydropower project on Facebook. There have even been letters sent to various levels and sectors, mentioning the sedimentation problem in the hydropower plant's reservoir.

An official said that, naturally, rivers have banks that erode and banks that deposit sediment. With the Lam River, from the sedimentation of the reservoir, the main eroding bank is the same bank that carries the vital National Highway 7. This year's rainy season has seen floods on the Lam River far exceeding expectations. The floodwaters surged against the side of National Highway 7, causing landslides and damaging this vital transportation artery. This is something anyone living in the mountainous area can see.

He then added that at the recent provincial People's Council meeting, the issue of sedimentation in hydropower reservoir areas was discussed, and representatives from relevant agencies had exchanged views and aimed at addressing the problem. “The Party Secretary of Tuong Duong commune raised this issue during the group discussion of the provincial People's Council. Afterwards, representatives from the Department of Agriculture and Environment had some discussions, essentially agreeing with the delegates' proposal and planning solutions…” he informed.

We sought to find out what actions the Department of Agriculture and Environment had taken following the year-end regular meeting of the Provincial People's Council. A responsible official stated that, in response to a proposal from a representative of Tuong Duong commune, the Department of Agriculture and Environment leadership affirmed that they would review hydropower projects, reassess the contents of the environmental impact assessment reports approved by competent authorities, and ultimately require hydropower plants to fulfill their responsibility to dredge reservoirs, thereby resolving existing issues. Through reservoir dredging, the dredged sand and gravel will be recovered in accordance with the law to serve disaster relief efforts and infrastructure development in the localities where the hydropower projects are located and other areas in the province.

Following the provincial People's Council meeting, the Department directed the Environmental Protection Sub-Department to review the environmental impact assessment reports of hydropower projects. This is to clarify which hydropower units are responsible for dredging and cleaning the reservoir periodically according to the approved environmental procedures...

Regarding the sedimentation of the hydroelectric reservoir, a matter of public concern, it has been mentioned in the press for quite some time. For the past five to seven years, anyone traveling on National Highway 7, through the communes of Tam Thai, Thach Giam, Hoa Binh town, Luong Minh… of the former Tuong Duong district, will clearly see many mounds of earth or sandbanks protruding from the Lam River in these areas. This sedimentation not only alters the flow of the Lam River but also significantly reduces the reservoir's water storage capacity compared to the original design.

Therefore, it's not difficult to understand why people in mountainous areas are concerned and suspicious about the sedimentation in the reservoirs of hydroelectric projects causing negative impacts during the rainy season and floods.

Natural disasters like floods, along with the operation of hydropower plants releasing water, are pressing issues nationwide. Therefore, implementing solutions to prevent negative consequences, including dredging and clearing waterways to restore water storage capacity in hydropower reservoirs, is crucial. This is not only the responsibility of government agencies but also the responsibility of the hydropower plants themselves!