Local residents and environmentalists have rung the alarm bell over the risks the Cau River in Bac Kan is facing. The river has been “driven to suicide” by the project on upgrading the provincial highway No 257 which has the length of 45 kilometers, linking the Bac Kan town to Don Market.
If flooding occurs, the hundreds of thousands of cubic meters of rocks would drift with the current to the lower course, threatening the lives of people and their properties.
Van Hoa’s reporters, who were present on the highway No 257, could see with their eyes how people tried to pollute the river. They followed a truck which carried rock and gravelly soil from the Song Cau Ward in Bac Kan town. The truck ran two more kilometers on the Bac Kan town – Don Market route and then right to come to a red soil area, near the road.
The land plot, covering an area of several thousands of square meters, spreading out from the road surface to the river bank, is considered the new area for people to throw gravelly soil and waste. The driver of the truck blatantly threw all the rocks and soil to the area without any obstacles.
The trucks left and then returned to the area every 30 minutes with full of rocks and gravelly soil.
On the way towards the Don Market, the reporters could see a lot of similar areas for throwing rocks and gravelly soil, which was located just one or two kilometers far from each other, and a lot of 15 ton trucks carrying soil and rocks.
Trieu Van Khiet, a local resident of Quang Thuan Commune in Bac Kan province, said that the rock throwing has been occurring for just several months, but the volume of rocks and soil thrown into the river bank is very big. It is estimated that every day, hundreds of trucks throw rocks and soil there.
In principle, the contractors of the highway No 257 project have to carry rocks and soil away. However, workers have been throwing rocks and soil into the Cau River bank.
“On sunny days, it is so dusty. On rainy days, the river turns red,” Khiet said. “I don’t know what will happen if it rains heavily for a long time”.
Luu Dinh Thang, Chair of the Quang Thuan Commune’s People Committee, has confirmed that the contractors of the project, including Me Linh, Thanh Hung, 228 Construction Company, have thrown rocks and soil into the river.
Purchasing places to throw soil?
According to Thang, the companies negotiated with local residents and purchased some areas to throw soil. The areas are agricultural land plots next to the river face, being managed by households. Besides, the companies have also spontaneously thrown to some other places.
It is estimated that the volume of rocks and soil thrown into the river bank has reached hundreds of thousands of cubic meters.
Thang said the local authorities understand well that the illegal soil throwing will seriously influence the ecological environment in the region. It is possible that the flood will sweep away the huge volume of rocks and soil, thus threatening the lives of people downstream. Meanwhile, the rainy season is coming.
According to Ngo Van Hai, a technical officer of the highway upgrading project, the project is being implemented by seven companies, which all have been throwing rock waste directly into the Cau River
Van Hoa
(MONRE)