"Erasing" a mussel village along Lam River?

In the middle of the third lunar month, we went to Hao Hao wharf (Trét hamlet, Khanh Son commune, Nam Dan) - a place famous for its "clam picking" profession. Tret hamlet's clams are famous for their fragrant, sweet, and chewy meat, which are very popular with diners from near and far. Traders come to buy them right at the wharf, so people don't have to go out and sell them. "Clam picking" is a side job but it brings in the main source of income for people in some hamlets in Khanh Son, especially Tret hamlet (hamlet 2).

During the mussel harvesting season, Hao Hao wharf is deserted. Photo: Thuc Duong

But now, due to the massive exploitation of sand and gravel, the flow of Lam River has changed; water pollution has caused the mussels to dry up and disappear. Hao Hao mussel wharf is deserted, empty, and the boat lies rusty on the shore. Mussel harvesting tools such as squeegees, rakes, nets, and rollers have been put away in cupboards and warehouses.

The clam-catching tools of Khanh Son (Nam Dan) people now have to "lie in the garden". Photo: Thuc Duong

With no more mussels, people lost their jobs and became unemployed. Some households with large gardens switched to growing lemons and vegetables; others went into the forest to pick trees and weave brooms to sell; the young went to the South and North to work for hire to make a living.

Mr. Ha Van Hue, a resident of Hamlet 2, said: “My family has 6 or 7 brothers and sisters who all work in the clam fishing business. Clams are the source of income for the whole family. All expenses depend on clams. Now that the clams are depleted, we are unemployed. This is the off-season, every year we go clam fishing by boat, earning a few hundred thousand a day, but now we have to sit around doing nothing.”

During the off-season, it was the clam season, some households felt sorry for their efforts and money, so they bought fuel to run their boats and try to rake, but it was no use. After waiting for half an afternoon at the dock, we finally met Mr. Hai and his wife who anchored their boat on the shore. He said in dismay: “I lost nearly 200,000 VND for fuel, going all the way down to Nam Cuong, Nam Trung, spending almost a day in the water and sun, but it didn’t work. The traders called to order, but it was only enough to cook soup.” He said, pointing to the clams he raked that day, estimating that he had collected about a few kilos of clams and some small fish, so he lost half of his fuel money, not counting the couple losing a day’s work. “Let’s just hang up the boat! We don’t dare go any further! Where can we make money from this?”, his wife sighed.

The few mussels that Mr. Hai and his wife caught after a day of soaking in the sun. Photo: Thuc Duong

Going along the Lam River flowing through Khanh Son Commune, at the docks, the boats are all on the shore, it is rare to see some people returning from clam hunting. But the result is the same: "Nothing!". This is completely different from 2 years ago, the docks were bustling with boats returning, full of clams. During the clam season (from March to November of the lunar calendar), each day, 1 boat (2 workers) rakes a hundred kilograms of clams, easily earning millions. During the clam season, the whole village is deserted, only the river is bustling. Now, on the contrary, the rice has not yet reached the harvest season, most people are at home, the river docks are deserted, and as for clams, "it is difficult to cook a bowl of vegetable soup with clams to eat! If you want to eat, you have to go to the market to buy clams from other places", said Mr. Viet Son.

So, the fear of wiping out Hao Hao mussel village is now present...