Currently water from Dầu Tiếng is taken to HCM City through open channels for agricultural, industrial and household use. — Photo zing.vn

HCM City — HCM City Party Secretary Đinh La Thăng has urged the People’s Committee to begin work on laying a pipeline to bring water to the city from Dầu Tiếng Dam in Tây Ninh Province.

“Dầu Tiếng is very important for HCM City because it ensures water security and safety,” Thăng said during a visit to the reservoir on Sunday.

Currently water from Dầu Tiếng is taken to HCM City through open channels for agricultural, industrial and household use.

“It is not safe and wastes water, especially when water is not needed for irrigation but the lake gates are still opened.”

Hồ Văn Lâm, general director of the Sài Gòn Water Supply Corporation, said the pipeline is estimated to cost around VNĐ10 trillion (US$450 million).

Thăng said, “It is a big investment and the corporation should draw up a proposal in the second quarter of this year to solicit investment.”

During his visit, Thăng also called on the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to amend the operational regulations for the lake which are over 30 years old.

“Related authorities must protect it better because HCM City and several neighbouring provinces use water from it.”

Thăng expressed concern about hundreds of households, mostly ethnic Vietnamese coming back from Cambodia, who are living on the dam water and generating wastewater.

“Factories should not be allowed to discharge their waste into the lake and raising fish in cages should be banned.”

He called on the authorities to instal equipment to monitor the lake’s environment.

He instructed HCM City authorities to release billions of small fishes (there are 500 million available now) in the reservoir to feed local residents.

The Dầu Tiếng – Phước Hòa irrigation system, with 270sq.km of water surface, is the biggest irrigation system in Việt Nam and supplies water to HCM City and Tây Ninh and Long An provinces. It irrigates over 108,000ha.

On February 10 the Government had issued a decision recognising Dầu Tiếng as a construction of national importance. — VNS