Buying and selling sea water in... the sea

Mr. Hoang Khoa sells sea water to customers - Photo: SH

Under the blazing sun of an early summer day, Mr. Ho Van Hai in An Duc 3 neighborhood, Cua Tung town, quickly held the seawater pipe and hung it on the truck carrying two large seawater tanks, then quickly opened the tap to let the water flow into the tanks.

Mr. Hai said that when people first heard about the seawater trade, they found it difficult to understand. But in fact, this profession has existed in coastal areas for decades. The seawater trade has appeared since seafood restaurants and bars serving tourists sprung up in Cua Tung and Cua Viet towns.

In order for seafood caught from the sea to survive for several days in large glass tanks, restaurant owners must use standard seawater and change the water daily. At first, many people thought that the seawater business was just a “play” but later on, it became more and more popular due to the increasing demand of seafood restaurants, so the number of seawater suppliers gradually increased.

Initially, seawater was transported by motorbike and contained in plastic cans. Gradually, the quantity increased so much that sellers had to use cars to meet customers' demand. Every day, seafood restaurants and bars in Cua Tung and Cua Viet towns use dozens of cubic meters of seawater. Mr. Hai alone sells about 10 cubic meters of seawater every day; during peak tourist season, he supplies seafood restaurants and bars with about 15 cubic meters of water to meet demand. The price of seawater also depends on the distance of transportation. If the transportation is short, the price of seawater is 150,000 - 200,000 VND/m3; if the transportation is long, the price is from 300,000 - 400,000 VND/m3.

Mr. Hai added that every day from 8am to 12am is the busiest time for seawater sellers like him. Because at this time, restaurants and seafood bars constantly call for seawater to change the water in the glass tanks. If the water is not delivered in time, it will affect the survival rate of seafood.

Morning is also the time when fishermen catch seafood to import to restaurants and seafood bars, so they need natural seawater to avoid fish, shrimp, clams, etc. from environmental shock and death. So if there is any delay, the restaurant owners will call someone else next time. His job does not have a fixed time, whenever someone calls, he quickly drives his truck to Cat Son village, Trung Giang commune, to get seawater. Sometimes he goes early in the morning, sometimes in the middle of a hot summer afternoon.

Folding the seawater pump that had just been pulled out to the road to sell to customers, Mr. Hoang Khoa in Cat Son village continued his work of feeding shrimp. Mr. Khoa shared that he has been involved in shrimp farming for nearly a few decades, through ups and downs. As for selling seawater to customers, he has only started doing it in recent years to earn extra income.

At first glance, many people think that this profession is simply scooping water from the sea to sell, but the truth is not that simple. To have seawater that meets the standards to supply to restaurants and seafood bars, the seawater must be clean and have the right salinity. It is not enough to just scoop water from the sea and bring it back to use, but it must be taken from a place with a certain depth, clear water, no sand, trash, moderate salinity... Once a suitable location has been chosen, a seawater suction system connected to the reservoirs is installed.

Currently, Mr. Khoa is installing a seawater suction pipe system in a reservoir nearly 150 m long. Because through experience, Mr. Khoa believes that only with that distance, the salinity of the seawater will reach 30-32/1,000 (32g/kg). The salinity will decrease slightly depending on the season. The salinity variation is not very important. Because with just a filter designed to fit the needs of removing trash, sand and floating organisms from the seawater, the suction pipe system into the reservoir that he installed will always reach the cleanest level.

Currently, those who supply seawater to seafood restaurants and bars mostly buy water from shrimp farmers. Because the seawater here is pumped hundreds of meters from shore. The water source is filtered and cleaned to raise shrimp, ensuring the survival of aquatic species. Besides, during the rainy and stormy season, the seawater is cloudy and the salinity decreases, so only shrimp farmers have a reserve source of seawater to supply to households selling seawater.

If you take water from the sea to sell, it is very easy to get dirty water and the consequences will be unpredictable. Selling sea water and letting seafood die from that water source will require compensation to restaurants and seafood bars. Currently, Mr. Hoang Khoa sells about 5 - 7m3 of sea water to restaurants and seafood bars every day at 100,000 VND/m3.

Mr. Nguyen Duc Vinh, owner of a seafood restaurant at Cua Viet beach, said that restaurants and seafood restaurants in Cua Viet town have to buy several cubic meters of seawater every week to change the water in large glass tanks to keep fresh seafood such as squid, blue crabs, groupers, etc. to serve customers.

Although restaurants and bars are located near the beach, it is not possible to just carry buckets and basins down to the sea to scoop up seawater to bring back to release fresh seafood. Because the seawater must be clean and have the right salinity... there is always a need for people to make a living by buying and selling seawater.

Sy Hoang

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/mua-ban-nuoc-bien-o-vung-bien-193545.htm