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| Red river polution |
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Red River or Song Hong is the most famous river in the north, being named after the water’s time-honored redness.
But by the morning of February 17, the dark blue water appeared, having spread 10km from Coc Leu Bridge to Xuan Tang ward in Lao Cai province.
Some fishermen said they couldn’t catch any fish in the past few days from the blue waters.
Pham Van Hung, a resident living at Coc Leu former ferry station near the river, told Tuoi Tre that although he closed the door, but he couldn’t bear the horrible smell seeping in from the river.
“I have little appetite left due to the smell,” he added.
Like Hung, many residents living in Coc Leu ward alongside the river banks also complain about the unbearable odor.
The water was reported on February 14 to be normal with a pH level ranging from 6,5-7.
owever since the morning of February 15, pH has increased up to 8, according to Luu Minh Hai, deputy director of Lao Cai northern province’s Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting.
According to him, the river is suffering from serious pollution caused by organic wastes.
Pollution could turn red water in the famous Red River in northern Vietnam into a dark blue, Hoang Van Bay, Head of the Office of Water and Minerals Management Department under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment said Friday.
Meanwhile, Nong Thi Bich Thuy, head of Lao Cai Environment Protection Department told Tuoi Tre they have begun to take samples of water and sediment from the Red River or Song Hong for analysis.
She confirmed the river stinks but claimed it is a common phenomenon during the dry season.
“The unbearable smell probably comes from mud layers and organic wastes at the river’s bottom [that show up as water level drops],” Thuy said.
She promised that the department will release an official report about this issue next week.
Le Manh An, the Lao Cai northern province’s Head of the Pollution Control Department, said that pH level in the river has increased dramatically from 5 to 8.
T.T -V.N.N