Locals in District 8 prepare packs of sand for flood prevention. Photo: nld.com.vn

HCM CITY — HCM City will spend VNĐ8 trillion for construction of 12 anti-flooding and environmental sanitation projects between 2021 and 2025.

Many flood control projects in HCM City have become outdated and are ineffective.

The deputy director of HCM City Department of Construction, Đặng Phú Thành, said the city People’s Committee has developed anti-flooding plans to 2025. Over the years, HCM City has implemented dozens of anti-flooding projects but many of them have lagged behind schedule.

Compared to the master plan, only 46 per cent of the target has been achieved. This can be seen at a sluice gate construction project to control tidal flooding worth VNĐ10 trillion. It has finally reached 96 per cent of the volume, but has been suspended for six months. The delay was due to a disagreement on contract appendices between the investor and the city People’s Committee. 

Authorities said that litter, outdated drainage and ineffective anti-flooding projects have all contributed to the flooding situation in the city.

The Department of Construction has proposed construction of 12 key projects, including 11 anti-flooding projects and one environmental sanitation project between now and 2025. They will cost more than VNĐ8 trillion.

Three projects will be in Thủ Đức City, on Road No. 8, Nguyễn Duy Trinh Street and Lã Xuân Oai Street.

However, architect Trần Vĩnh Nam, an urban expert, said that current anti-flooding projects are “patchy” and if these projects are implemented at the same time, construction sites will block city streets, causing even more inconvenience for locals. The timing is not ideal because the rainy season is coming, he added.

“Many projects are implemented on roads where residential areas have existed for a long time. Road digging and resetting of sewer pipes will cause a great waste of resources,” he said.

In a related matter, excessive exploitation of underground water has contributed to subsidence and created more flooding points. 

Because districts 12, Bình Tân and Bình Chánh are expanding, they need a long-term and sustainable anti-flooding solution. Though the initial cost is expensive, more money will be saved in the long run.

Professor Lê Huy Bá, former director of the Institute of Science, Technology and Environmental Management, said that current flood control projects in HCM City are outdated and lack consistent planning, and some have not even started.

The long-term solution involves speeding up current anti-flooding projects and planning large-scale projects.

Bá said that authorities should consider projects that are regional, linking neighbouring provinces and cities, so that water drainage and tidal prevention measures are more visible. - VNS