Quang Ngai Chairman: Prioritize repairing damage to dams and irrigation works

Quang Ngai province is focusing on repairing damaged irrigation works after floods to ensure safety and prepare well for the winter-spring crop.

Urgent task

Heavy rains lasting from late October to early November, along with the impact of storm No. 13, have caused serious damage to the canal system and irrigation works in Quang Ngai province. According to the province's Irrigation Department, the level of landslides and sedimentation recorded in the recent natural disaster far exceeded that of many years ago, paralyzing water supply activities in many areas, while also posing a risk of insecurity to saltwater dams and reservoirs. The total initial damage value is estimated at about 700 billion VND.

The recent floods have damaged hundreds of irrigation works in Quang Ngai. Photo: LK

Quang Ngai Irrigation Works Exploitation Company Limited alone recorded 175 damaged works, nearly 200m of canal broken, over 4.4km of canal eroded and about 9.7km of canal filled up. In the Kon Tum area (old), the management unit also reported 40 construction items including reservoirs, dams, canals damaged, eroded and filled up.

In the communes, wards and special zones in the area, more than 41km of canals were damaged. In addition, dams to prevent saltwater intrusion and retain freshwater were flooded with water hyacinth, rubbish and trees in large quantities upstream of the regulating sluices and spillways, hindering flood drainage, affecting the operation and posing a risk to the safety of the works. All of this damage puts great pressure on the recovery work while the winter-spring season is approaching.

Based on this reality, immediately after the storm ended, with the works managed by the unit, Quang Ngai Irrigation Works Exploitation Company Limited urgently inspected the construction items. Mr. Ha The Vinh, Director of the company said: "We quickly surveyed the damaged points and made a priority list to send to the authorities. At the same time, we coordinated with the local authorities to block off dangerous areas, erect barriers at overflow points and broken canal sections to ensure the safety of the people."

Estimated damage to irrigation works in Quang Ngai province due to floods is about 700 billion VND. Photo: LK

Faced with the huge losses, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Hoang Giang requested to prioritize repairing damage at dams and irrigation works so as not to disrupt production. The budget reserve sources and support funds from the Central Government, the Vietnam Fatherland Front and the province were requested to be used effectively to immediately handle urgent tasks, ensuring stability in people's lives and agricultural production.

“The Department of Agriculture and Environment will coordinate with the Department of Finance to review the damage and guide localities to compile accurate statistics to report to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment. At the same time, research solutions to restore agricultural production after floods, first of all, support localities to urgently clear canals and temporarily repair key items to meet the crop schedule,” Mr. Giang directed.

Resource constraints

Although the units have deployed urgently, the repair process is facing many obstacles. According to Mr. Ha The Vinh, Director of Quang Ngai Irrigation Works Exploitation Company Limited, the problem is difficult: "The budget is still low, while the damage volume is too large. The company's mechanical equipment and human resources are not enough to deploy simultaneously on a large scale."

Quang Ngai province will soon fix the problem, ensuring that irrigation works can effectively supply water for production. Photo: LK

The winter-spring season is approaching, so ensuring water supply is the current key task. The company has mobilized maximum forces to inspect the entire construction system and immediately handle the blockages. At the same time, it is taking advantage of existing funding sources for temporary repairs. In addition, the unit also urgently needs financial support to fix and clear the canal, ensure the operation of the project and supply water for production as well as invest in upgrading key works," said Mr. Vinh.

Quang Ngai irrigation sector conducts inspection of machinery and equipment to prepare for the upcoming winter-spring crop. Photo: LK

The leaders of the Quang Ngai Province Irrigation Department also admitted that the volume of sedimentation and landslides this year is very large, spread over many areas. In addition, the terrain in mountainous areas is fragmented, causing many landslides, making it very difficult to bring in equipment and human resources to fix the problem. While the crop season is approaching, any delay will directly affect people's production. Therefore, for projects managed by the locality, the Department of Agriculture and Environment will organize inspections of a number of projects with relatively large irrigation areas, severely damaged and capable of ensuring low irrigation for timely handling.

“On the part of the Department, in the immediate future, we will advise the Department of Agriculture and Environment and the Provincial Civil Defense Command to request the Provincial People's Committee to promptly announce a decision on an emergency situation regarding natural disasters for damaged works according to the provisions of the law on natural disaster prevention and control. From there, it will serve as a basis for competent authorities to consider issuing an emergency order to repair damaged works according to the provisions of the law.

For the winter-spring crop, the Department of Agriculture and Environment has issued a seasonal schedule guide. 2 irrigation works exploitation companies and localities have plans to ensure irrigation water. Currently, the amount of water in reservoirs is basically enough for production. However, the canal system must be clear to be effective. We plan to organize an inspection of the repair, dredging and water supply preparation work in early December to assess the operational capacity before the crop season," Mr. Vo Doan, Head of the Irrigation Sub-Department of Quang Ngai province informed.

“We are urgently compiling documents to advise the Provincial People’s Committee to declare an emergency situation for damaged works. Once this decision is made, the allocation of funds and implementation of repairs will be faster, contributing to ensuring timely water supply for agricultural production,” Mr. Vo Doan affirmed.

Source: https://nongnghiepmoitruong.vn/chu-tich-quang-ngai-uu-tien-khac-phuc-hu-hong-ho-dap-cong-trinh-thuy-loi-d786420.html