5 projects to combat drought and saltwater intrusion in the West

The situation of saltwater intrusion has been becoming complicated in the Mekong Delta, threatening to greatly affect production and people’s lives.

Kenh Lap freshwater reservoir (Ba Tri, Ben Tre) was completed and put into use four months ago.

One million cubic meter freshwater reservoir in Ba Tri, Ben Tre.

The project started in 2017, passing through three communes of Tan Xuan, Phuoc Tuy and Phu Ngai, providing enough fresh water for industrial production and cultivation, with a total cost of about 85 billion VND, from the central and local budgets.

Ba Tri district has a total herd of over 100,000 cows, the largest in the province.

`The worst scenario is that if the salinity drought continues in the coming months, Kenh Lap Lake will still ensure enough water supply for daily life and cultivation for people in the area,` said Mr. Ho Van Thuong, Deputy Head of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The Water Management Project in Ben Tre with a total investment of more than 6,000 billion VND, from Japanese loans, invested by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, is also being implemented.

When completed, the project will prevent high tides, cope with rising sea levels, and control salinity for over 200,000 hectares of natural land in nine districts and Ben Tre City.

The project to block Cua Trung River (Tien Giang) to create a freshwater lake costs nearly 900 billion VND.

Mr. Nguyen Thien Phap, Head of the Department of Rural Development and Irrigation, said that this Winter-Spring season, Tien Giang province has 60,000 hectares of rice, 10,000 hectares of crops and 80,000 hectares of fruit trees.

`We and the authorities advise people to sow rice outside according to the seasonal schedule and proactively store fresh water,` Mr. Phap said, adding that in urgent cases, the locality will allocate containers, and at the same time emergency

According to Mr. Phap, if the project to dam both ends of Cua Trung River is submitted to the Government for approval by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, it will be constructed and put into use next year and will be the largest coastal freshwater reservoir in the region.

Diagram of dam construction project to build freshwater reservoir of Cua Trung river in Tien Giang.

The Ninh Quoi lock gate on Quan Lo Phung Hiep canal (Hong Dan district, Bac Lieu province) has been basically completed and put into operation, helping to preserve at least 40,000 hectares of local agricultural land in the Winter-Spring crop.

`The sewer, put into use early, promptly stored fresh water from Hau Giang and Soc Trang and prevented salt water from overflowing from the sea,` said Mr. Luu Hoang Ly, Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Bac Lieu province.

The project was started at the end of November 2018, expected to be put into operation in the 2020-2021 dry season.

The project includes two parts: repairing Ninh Quoi culvert and building Ninh Quoi lock culvert with a total investment of 360 billion VND.

Ninh Quoi sluice will help proactively regulate water, control salinity, and maintain freshness for hundreds of thousands of hectares of rice and vegetables in Bac Lieu, Soc Trang, and Hau Giang;

This is a key project in the planning for irrigation construction in the Mekong Delta until 2020 and a vision to 2050.

The Cai Lon – Cai Be irrigation sluice was built in Chau Thanh, Kien Giang in early November. According to the design, the Cai Lon river sluice has a drainage width of 455 m, including 11 compartments and a 15 m wide lock.

Perspective of the Cai Be River salinity prevention sluice.

The project is invested 3,300 billion VND, from Government bond capital managed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, expected to be completed by the end of 2021.

The project’s mission is to control and regulate water sources (salty, brackish, fresh) for 384,000 hectares in Kien Giang, Hau Giang, Ca Mau and Bac Lieu.

Mr. Nguyen Van Tam, Director of Kien Giang Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said that currently salt water has penetrated the Cai Lon River more than 50 km deep.

`The construction of the Cai Lon – Cai Be saltwater prevention sluice gate is urgent. The completed project will help proactively control water sources and stabilize production for 160,000 hectares of land in the Ca Mau peninsula,` Mr. Tam said.

As a region benefiting from the project, Chairman of Hau Giang Provincial People’s Committee Le Tien Chau said that the project is on the premise of building a general planning of the Mekong Delta irrigation system, contributing to the implementation of Resolution No. 120 of the

Location of 5 projects to combat drought and saltwater intrusion in the West.

In 2016, a historic drought and saltwater intrusion in the Mekong Delta caused 600,000 people to lack domestic water and 160,000 hectares of land to be salty, causing damage of more than 5,500 billion VND.