VietNamNet Bridge – Vast swathes of agricultural land on the banks of the Chu River in Thieu Nguyen Commune in the central province of Thanh Hoa has been illegally dug up by so-called "sand hackers."


HTML clipboard Weak points along the Chu River's bank in the central province of Thanh Hoa's Thieu Hoa District are being reinforced. Sand on the riverbank has been illegally extracted for years. (Photo: VNS)
Nguyen Kim Hong, chairman of the Thieu Nguyen Communal People's Committee, said sand had been illegally mined along a one-kilometre length of the Chu River running through his commune for years.


"Sand extraction has never been as fierce as it is these days" Hong said.

"Imagine, every night between 50 to 80 large vessels ply the river. Tens of thousand of square metres of farmland have been lost. If we're not successful in putting an end to this illegal activity, farmers in Thieu Nguyen will soon be landless."


Anh Tuan, a reporter on the Lao dong (Labour) newspaper, said sand was being taken to construction sites to mix with cement.


Locals said sand had been illegally mined for years, but only on a small scale.


Up to March, "sand hacking" activities were limited due to strict controls imposed by the Thanh Hoa provincial People's Committee. However, after that period, sand hackers began operating at night to avoid detection, he said.


Nguyen Viet Duc, a farmer from Nguyen Thang Village in Thieu Nguyen Commune, said the bulk of his income came from growing mulberry trees on his 1,400 square metre farm.


"Yet in the last 30 days, sand hackers have taken away two sao (720 square metres). If the illegal sand extraction continues, all my 1,440 square metres of mulberry trees will disappear into the river," Duc said.


Mai Xuan Tu, another farmer from the same village, said: "My family originally had 2,520 square metres on which to grow mulberry trees. Now we have just 1,080 square metres left. Sand hackers have taken away 1,440 square metres."

According to farmers from the village, each year they have to pay the equivalent of 100kg of rice in tax for each sao of land they farm. Making matters worse, the tax does not take into account land that has been lost due to illegal sand extraction.


"We don't know how to deal with this situation. For sure we can't pay the tax. Our very livelihood is under threat," Tu said.

A hundred and twenty hectares of land on the banks of the Chu river has been allocated to farmers by the Thieu Nguyen Communal People's Committee. Mulberry trees grown in the area are the chief source of income for local farmers.


Nguyen Kim Hong, chairman of the Thieu Nguyen Commune People's Committee, said the matter had been reported to district and provincial authorities. As a result, Hong said sand extraction had declined in April.


VietNamNet/Viet Nam News