Request to review the operating procedures of important, special, inter-provincial irrigation reservoirs

Accordingly, in order to proactively and effectively respond to natural disasters in the coming time, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment requires units managing and exploiting important irrigation reservoirs and inter-provincial irrigation reservoirs to immediately organize a comprehensive review and assessment of the operation of irrigation reservoirs according to the operating procedures and implementation work in the past time, ensuring the safety of works, downstream areas and serving multi-purpose water supply (such as: Law on Natural Disaster Prevention, Civil Defense, Water Resources, ... and documents guiding implementation), the situation of rain and floods as a basis for adjusting and supplementing the operating procedures in accordance with the conditions of climate change, extreme rain and floods, infrastructure and downstream safety requirements, completing the review and preparing documents to adjust the operating procedures before April 2026.

Photo caption — Canh Tang Lake will regulate water resources to irrigate about 6,460 hectares of cultivated land in 13 communes in Lac Son and Yen Thuy districts, Phu Tho province (formerly Hoa Binh province). Photo: Trong Dat/VNA

In particular, note some contents: Prioritize the useful capacity of the reservoir to cut floods for downstream, in which the pre-flood water level is flexibly regulated to maximize flood prevention capacity; Use a part of the flood prevention capacity above the normal rising water level of the reservoir to improve the ability to cut and reduce floods for downstream.

Along with that, specify the minimum notice time before flood discharge; methods of communication and warning to agencies, units and people in the affected area (flood discharge time, flood discharge volume, scope and level of flooding...), communication and warning solutions when there is no phone signal or power outage; update data, share monitoring and operation data of works; regulations on coordination with commune-level authorities and related units downstream to monitor, supervise and provide relevant information for management and operation; Regulations on construction monitoring, specialized hydrometeorological monitoring, calculation of flow to the reservoir, monitoring downstream of reservoirs and technical procedures for sluice gate operation; Assign tasks and responsibilities clearly to each unit and individual to ensure safety for works and downstream areas.

Units need to coordinate with the Department of Agriculture and Environment and relevant local agencies and units to collect flood data to update or develop new disaster response plans for projects, downstream flood maps, flood escape corridors and emergency response plans for reservoirs close to reality, ensuring the "four on-site" motto and suitable to the specific situation of operating local governments at 2 levels.

In particular, organize inspection and assessment of the current status of the reservoir after the flood season of 2025, develop plans and repair options to ensure the safety of the project during the flood season of 2026 and the following years (check the electrical system, backup power source, and valve gate lifting equipment to ensure accurate and safe operation). Synthesize proposed work contents and add them to the Unit's production and business plan in 2026 according to regulations.

Units managing the exploitation of especially important irrigation reservoirs shall send their reporting results to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (through the Department of Irrigation Works Management and Construction) before January 15, 2026; Units managing the exploitation of inter-provincial irrigation reservoirs shall send their reporting results to the Provincial People's Committee to arrange funding for implementation, and synthesize and send the results to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment before January 30, 2026.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/kinh-te/yeu-cau-ra-soat-quy-trinh-van-hanh-cac-ho-chua-thuy-loi-quan-trong-dac-biet-lien-tinh-20251209163239513.htm