Tons of dead fish floating on the surface, Vinh City plans to build a forced pumping system to replace Hao Thanh water filter

Fish still die on Vinh moat

On the morning of October 13th, dead fish were still floating on the surface of the moat surrounding the ancient citadel of Vinh. Photo: Thanh Phuc

On the morning of October 13, at Vinh Canal flowing through Block 1, Cua Nam Ward, dead fish were still floating in the canal. Workers from Nghe An Urban Environment and Construction Joint Stock Company were dividing into groups to collect the fish.

Ms. Nguyet, a worker at the company, said: "Since Tuesday, workers have had to stay here to collect dead fish. On days when there were many dead fish, we worked through lunchtime. For the past two days, there have been fewer dead fish, but we still have to work continuously. Because as soon as we clean up one section of the ditch, dead fish start surfacing in another section."

For the past four days, workers from the Nghe An Urban Environment and Construction Joint Stock Company have been continuously working to remove dead fish. Photo: Thanh Phuc

Although the amount of dead fish was not as dense and covered the bottom of the moat as on October 10, because the fish decomposed quickly, it gave off a strong stench, polluting the environment and affecting the lives of people living nearby.

Ms. Tran Thi Ly, a resident of Doi Cung ward along Vinh city's moat, said: "It rains and then clears up, fish die continuously, the water in the moat is heavily polluted, so the fishy, ​​foul smell carries into the house with the wind. In the coming days, according to the forecast, there will be heavy rain, very likely to be flooded, the only worry is that when the water in the moat rises, fish continue to die and drift onto the road, into people's houses, we don't know how to handle it."

Although the amount of dead fish was not as dense as on October 10, the workers still had a hard time. Photo: Thanh Phuc

For the past two days, a mass fish kill has also occurred in Cua Nam ecological lake. Dead fish cover the surface of the lake, and dozens of workers, along with boats and trucks, have been continuously collecting the carcasses for disposal, but it's still not enough.

Mr. Phan Van Tam - Head of Planning Department, Nghe An Urban Environment and Construction Joint Stock Company said: "In the past 2 days alone, every day, the company has to mobilize 30-35 workers to be on duty in the moat area and Cua Nam ecological lake to handle the fish carcasses. We scooped them up in the morning, and in the afternoon, we checked again and saw the fish carcasses floating up. Therefore, despite working continuously, the amount of fish carcasses still cannot be completely handled. And we don't know when this work will end because this situation continues. Meanwhile, it's raining so the workers are very tired."

Fish are still floating on the surface of the moat surrounding Vinh ancient citadel. Video : Thanh Phuc

Will build forced pumping system, replace water filter in moat

Over the past few days, an estimated 4-5 tons of dead fish have been disposed of. Photo: Thanh Phuc

Mr. Nguyen Van Ngoc, Head of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Vinh City, said: "The inspection results show that the mass fish deaths in Vinh City's moat in recent days are due to four reasons."

Firstly, the water in the moat is heavily polluted, with a thick layer of sediment deposited at the bottom due to a lack of dredging. Secondly, the wastewater treatment pumping station in the northeast of the city is damaged, preventing wastewater from being treated in a timely manner, causing it to overflow into the moat and increasing pollution levels. Thirdly, after rain, tilapia often suffer from thermal shock, leading to death. Fourthly, the density of fish in the moat is too high, so when they die, they tend to die in large numbers.

Workers were continuously scooping up fish, but there were still more to catch. Photo taken on October 13th. Photo: Thanh Phuc

To address the fish kill and environmental pollution in the ancient moat area, the Vinh City People's Committee has directed the Nghe An Urban Environment and Construction Joint Stock Company to take the lead and coordinate with the People's Committees of Cua Nam, Quang Trung, and Doi Cung wards to mobilize forces and organize the removal of dead fish in the moat area in a timely manner to minimize environmental pollution. They will regularly monitor and promptly remove dead fish in the coming days. At the same time, they will organize the harvesting of fish in the moat to prevent a large-scale fish population from multiplying and dying in large numbers.

Vinh City People's Committee also assigned Vinh City Construction Investment Project Management Board to monitor and confirm the implementation volume of Nghe An Urban Environment and Construction Joint Stock Company; Ward People's Committees are responsible for confirming and supervising the community.

Fish deaths have also occurred in Cua Nam ecological lake in the past two days. (Photo taken on October 13). Photo: Thanh Phuc

For Vinh Urban Infrastructure Management and Development Joint Stock Company, it is necessary to closely coordinate with the consulting unit to evaluate and develop a plan to repair and replace damaged machinery, operate the wastewater system at the ancient citadel in particular, and in the city in general, ensuring compliance with approved procedures, minimizing wastewater flow into the regulating lake and rivers in the area.

Mr. Nguyen Van Ngoc, Head of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Vinh City, further informed: “The city is urgently and thoroughly assigning relevant units to handle the removal of dead fish in the moat and the Cua Nam ecological lake. At the same time, we are directing relevant units to promptly repair and rectify the damage to the pressurized wastewater transmission pipeline; and operate the sluice gates in the moat according to design and procedures.”

Vinh City People's Committee has directed relevant units to operate the sluice gates in the moat in accordance with the design. Photo: Thanh Phuc

In addition, the Vinh City People's Committee has also proposed dredging the ancient citadel moat every year. At the same time, in the medium-term plan, a forced pumping system will be built, and a convection channel will be built with the Vinh River to filter the water in the Vinh ancient citadel moat. Hopefully, with these positive and drastic actions, the pollution problem in the ancient citadel moat will be completely resolved...

Directive from the Vinh City People's Committee on resolving the fish kill and environmental pollution situation in the Vinh ancient citadel moat area. Screenshot: Thanh Phuc

Regarding the direction of handling the incident of dead fish in Vinh Citadel, in Document 5654/UBND-TNMT dated October 11, 2023 signed by Vice Chairman of Vinh City People's Committee Tran Quang Lam, the Department of Internal Affairs was assigned to review the responsibility of Vinh Urban Infrastructure Management and Development Joint Stock Company in operating the drainage system and responsibility when the fish death incident occurred. According to the assessment of Vinh City People's Committee, Vinh Urban Infrastructure Management and Development Joint Stock Company has not performed well in managing and operating the ancient Citadel drainage system according to the contract with the City People's Committee; passive, not resolute in collecting dead fish, handling the environment when the incident occurred, although the leaders of the City People's Committee and specialized departments have directly directed.

Source: https://baonghean.vn/hang-tan-ca-chet-noi-trang-tp-vinh-len-ke-hoach-xay-dung-he-thong-bom-cuong-buc-thay-loc-nuoc-hao-thanh-post278250.html