VietNamNet Bridge – Nearly 500 hectares of the West Lake’s surface water has been filled with dirty water and garbage. The water and air environment pollution of the West Lake has become alarming.

For a long time, the West Lake has been serving as a fan of the God, carrying the fresh air to Hanoians. In the morning or evening, Hanoians regularly go to the West Lake to take the air, do some physical exercise, breathe fresh air after a hard working day. The lake has become an ideal place for the people to relax, enjoy good food or breathe the lotus fragrance.

However, the West Lake is becoming a rubbish dump of Hanoi.

Creatures of West Lake killed gradually due to polluted water

In recent years, every time when it gets hot and there is little rain, the water of the West Lake turns from green into muddy, which gives terrible smells. When it gets hot, the environment changes dramatically, which makes fishes die in masses. On the area around the floating restaurant, one can see black oil scum which makes the fish lack oxygen and turn dead.

The landscape of the West Lake has changed a lot. The path around the lake, 16 kilometers in length, seems to become shorter. The area of the lake has been narrowed, while the lake has become more shallow because of too much garbage, which go along the pipelines flow to the lake.

On a narrow area facing the Xuan Dieu street, the water has turned black, while dead fish bodies turn the surface water white. Environment workers pick up dead fish bodies every day, but new dead fish bodies appear all the time.

The appearance of dead fish would not surprise people, if they appear on stagnant ponds. Therefore, experts have warned that once dead fish bodies appear at the West Lake which has the area of 500 hectares, this means that the pollution has reached the alarm level. Especially, not only small fish, but big fish, weighing one kilo and more, also die.

Not only fish and shrimp cannot live on such a polluted environment, but snails are also getting exhausted. With polluted water and mud, no creature can live.

Once upon a time, there was a bustling snail market, gathering on the Lac Long Quan Street, near the Vong Thi Village. Every day, several tons of the West Lake’s snails were carried there for sale. However, the market has disappeared with no more snail shop. There is only grass.

The fishermen around the West Lake now have to buy snails from other sources to use as the bait for fishing. There are still a few fish shops on the pavement of Lac Long Quan Street, but no one can say for sure if the fish are caught from the West Lake.

The West Lake’s snails and carps, the most special food of the West Lake, have become scarcer.

Meanwhile, the life of urbanites has also changed due to the pollution.

Not only aquatic living, but the people living around the West Lake area has also been affected by the pollution. Instead of opening the doors widely to enjoy the fresh air, a lot of houses have to close the doors all the day to avoid the terrible smell from the lake.

People still go to the lake to do physical exercises every evening. However, some of them have given up the habit, while others have to wear protective masks when walking around the lake.

Meanwhile, the food made of the fish and shrimp of the West Lake has become unfavorite by Hanoians. Le Thu, who lives in Vong Thi village, said that she is not sure if the fish on sale are really from the West Lake. However, even if the fish are caught from the lake, he would not dare to eat, because the fish live in a severely polluted environment

Do Thi