Workers at Đuống River surface water plant in Gia Lâm District. — VNA/VNS Photo Mạnh Khánh

HÀ NỘI – People living in the capital city of Hà Nội will not suffer shortages of clean water this summer when four water supply projects are completed, according to Hà Nội Construction Department.

Lê Văn Dục, the department’s director, said four water supply projects had been put into operation, raising the city’s supply capacity to 1.37 million cubic metres a day.

During the summer of 2019, the city’s water demand is expected to be 1.1 million cubic metres per day, while the supply capacity is 1.2 million cubic metres per day.

It is forecast that the demand for water will increase by 5-10 per cent and the number of users will rise by 6 per cent. But the total volume of clean water will still be sufficient, according to Dục.

The opening of Tây Mỗ booster pump station and more water resources from Đuống River surface water plant to Hoàng Mai, Hà Đông and Thanh Trì districts will help ensure water supply in case of unplanned incidents or maintenance on the Đà River pipeline, he said.

"Unplanned incidents or pipeline maintenance may leave people without water for only one day. However, the shortage of water may occur in some urban areas that have just been put into use as the water supply system has not been invested synchronously," Dục said.

During a recent online meeting of the People's Council and Hà Nội City People's Committee with leaders of districts and towns, Secretary of Hà Nội City Party Committee Hoàng Trung Hải, said the clean water supply for Hanoians had increased significantly in recent years with the water supply rate in the urban area maintained at approximately 100 per cent while that rate in rural areas had climbed from 50 per cent to 57 per cent.

Hải also noted some problems might arise, affecting the supply of clean water to people this summer due to some clean water supply systems in the city becoming degraded.

According to the forecast of the Central Meteorological and Hydrological Centre, this summer temperatures will be higher than last year, so the demand for water will increase.

The water supply system will have to operate at maximum capacity, leading to risks of pipes breaking, especially at degraded sections, according to Hải.

He also said water projects in the city were progressing slowly while it had been difficult to call for investment in a water supply network in rural areas.

In order to ensure water supply during the summer, the city People's Committee also required clean water companies to inspect and take specific solutions to tackle incidents.

So far, the capital city has approved 34 clean water supply projects, which are expected to increase the access to clean water in rural communes to 94 per cent once they are fully operational.

By the end of this year, five water plants are expected to be completed, raising the total capacity by 525,000 cubic metres a day and the rate of rural residents with access to clean water to 73-75 per cent.

During the meeting, the leader of the Construction Department also said in the first six months of this year, the city had removed four more flooding black spots.

The city would implement many solutions and continue to upgrade the drainage system operation centre to handle low-lying points on main roads when heavy rains occur. — VNS