Floating village on the hydroelectric reservoir.

TUYEN QUANG - Following migrations from the mountains, many families have returned to raise fish in cages on the reservoir of the hydroelectric dam, creating a stable and sustainable livelihood.

In 2006, the Tuyen Quang hydroelectric reservoir suddenly became an impossibly large lake, with water rising up to the mountainside. The once fiercely flowing Gam and Nang rivers suddenly became calm, their surfaces flat like giant mirrors. Where this electricity was generated, countless people had to rise up and seek new livelihoods.

Many floating fish farms with cages are located on the Tuyen Quang hydroelectric reservoir in the Tat Nga area, Lam Binh commune. Photo: Tu Thanh.

One of them is Mr. Hoang Van Tuan (born in 1980), originally from Thuy Loa commune, former Na Hang district. When the relocation notice was issued, his family moved to the resettlement area in An Khang commune, former Tuyen Quang city, now An Tuong ward. The new house has complete infrastructure, including concrete roads, electricity, and water.

However, his new home presented many difficulties, so in 2008 he decided to return to his birthplace to start a new life. Mr. Tuan recounted: "I started with only 2 million dong in hand. I bought two fishing nets and a small boat, and then went back to fishing on the lake. Saving every penny, learning from those around me, I made a small cage out of bamboo tied to a plastic barrel and released about 1,000 catfish. The food was just small fish I caught, cooked. Back then, I didn't dare think about fish feed; I saved on everything I could."

With 10 cages for raising specialty fish such as snakehead and catfish, Mr. Hoang Van Tuan's family in Lam Binh commune, Tuyen Quang province, earns between 100 and 150 million VND per year. Photo: Tu Thanh.

In the years that followed, people looked to each other. Those familiar with the river moved to the lake. Gradually, from a few people, dozens of households grew. Over time, people built more temporary houses on rafts to live in. The vast lake suddenly had a "village" without gates or entrances. At night, each raft house switched on a light bulb, and when viewed from the mountain, it looked like a band of falling stars close to the water's surface.

By 2017, having saved up money from fishing and fish farming, the family was able to buy a plot of land in Lang Can town, formerly Lam Binh district - now Lam Binh commune - to live on.

"Now that the children are grown up, they can take care of themselves. Sometimes my wife and I go to the lake for a whole week, only returning on the weekend, bringing back the fish we caught to sell to wholesalers and retailers at the market," he recounted.

Starting with just one fish cage, Mr. Hoang Van Tuan's family has now invested in a total of 10 fish cages on the hydroelectric reservoir. Photo: Tu Thanh.

Starting with just one fish cage, his family has now expanded to 10 cages with sturdy iron frames. They mainly raise snakehead fish and catfish. Smaller fish are fed with feed pellets, while larger fish are raised on fresh fish purchased from local people. The price of snakehead fish ranges from 80,000 to 100,000 VND per kilogram.

"Calculated out, each cage of catfish, if conditions are favorable, yields about 40-50 million VND. After deducting all expenses, my family still earns around 100-150 million VND per year. In the future, if the lake water and weather are favorable, I still want to expand the cages and raise a few more types of fish," Mr. Tuan shared.

To harvest a cage of catfish weighing 3-4 kg/fish, it takes about two years of farming. Therefore, the main daily income of aquaculture households in the hydroelectric reservoir comes primarily from catching fish, shrimp, and prawns. During peak season, this can yield an income of 500,000 to over 1 million VND per day.

Every day, aquaculture farmers use winches to catch more fish, shrimp, and prawns, which serve both as feed for their caged fish and to increase their income. Photo: Tu Thanh.

Not only Mr. Tuan's family, but also many households in the resettlement area of ​​An Tuong ward have successively moved back to the Tat Nga reservoir area in Lam Binh commune, building rafts, setting up cages, and raising fish. Most of them are brothers, relatives, or people from the same village from the past; seeing each other succeed, they encouraged each other to follow suit. Many families who were previously struggling now earn between 70 and 200 million VND annually thanks to cage fish farming, gradually stabilizing their lives and improving their homes.

Tuyen Quang province is developing aquaculture in an intensive, semi-intensive, bio-secure manner, and according to VietGAP standards. The province currently has over 18,600 hectares of water surface, of which hydroelectric reservoirs account for approximately 13,000 hectares, and specialized aquaculture ponds and lakes account for over 5,400 hectares, with an average yield of 2 tons/ha. The area for raising specialty fish and cold-water fish is approximately 26,000 m³, with an annual production of over 160 tons of cold-water fish. On rivers and lakes, the total number of fish cages has reached approximately 3,300.

Source: https://nongnghiepmoitruong.vn/lang-noi-tren-long-ho-thuy-dien-d785229.html