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| Big rain causes flooding in many streets in HCM City |
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Speaking at a conference in the city on Wednesday to discuss ways to prevent the flooding during rainy seasons, Dr Le Vinh Danh, rector of Ton Duc Thang University, said 96 spots in the city were often flooded because of heavy rains and 67 others because of river tides.
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The HCM City Waterway Division Authority said illegal reclamation of land had increased. There are now a total of 182 encroached sites along the citys rivers and canals, including 49 in District 7, 39 in District 8, 24 in Binh Chanh, and 15 in Nha Be.
Prof Le Huy Ba of HCM City Industry University said in the last 14 years, the canals had shrunk by 16.4ha due to encroachment.
Associate Professor Nguyen Huu Lan of Ton Duc Thang University said Binh Tien Lake in District 6, which drains rainwater from Districts 6,8,11, Tan Binh and Binh Chanh, had lost 740,000sq.m.
Ngo Luc Tai, director of the former Department of Transport and Public Works, said districts 7, Nha Be and Binh Chanh were low-lying and used to drain the city but could no longer do so because of urban development. Spending on drainage systems and dredging canals would be a waste of money if the encroachment was not stopped, he said.
Ba said large underground or half-underground reservoirs should be built in Districts 2, 9, Thu Duc, Go Vap, Binh Thanh and Binh Chanh to drain rainwater, thus reducing flooding. Nguyen Ngoc Cong, deputy director of the Steering Centre for Anti-flooding Programme, said his agency was drafting plans to build reservoirs.
Some delegates blamed the poor urban planning for the problem. "The citys population has grown by 41 per cent since 1999 but infrastructure development has not keep pace with that," Tai pointed out.
Bach Anh Tuan of Ton Duc Thang University called for doing away with concrete pavements, saying pavements having more space for trees and grass would help keep rainwater, most of which now flows into the drains.
The centre said only 1,500km of drainage had been built under a 2001 Government-approved programme to build 7,500km, while the old drainage system was at full capacity.
V.N.S