VietNamNet Bridge – The leakage at the Song Tranh 2 dam has urged the authorities of Quang Nam province to inspect the safety of all hydro-power dams in the city.

Ministry says Tranh River hydropower plant is faulty
Mr. Nguyen Thanh Quang, director of the local Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, says that inspection will be implemented at over 40 dams in the province in early April.

Mr. Nguyen Minh Tuan from the local Steering Board for Flood and Storm Control, says that all large hydro-power plants must be inspected carefully to ensure safety.

“We pay special attention to the leakage at the Song Tranh 2 dam,” Mr. Tuan says.

Hydro-power plants in Quang Nam have been requested to closely combine with local authorities and to widely inform local residents whenever they discharge water.

Quang Nam province has 43 hydro-power plants, including ten with large scales. The three largest works consist of Song Tranh 2, with a reservoir of 740 million cubic meters of water, A Vuong with 343 million cubic meters and DaMil with 310 million cubic meters.

After three days of treatment, the volume of water runs through cracks on the Song Trnah 2 dam has reduced but the area of absorbent concrete on the dam is widening, causing worry for local people.

On March 26, during an inspection of the leaking dam of the Song Tranh 2 hydropower plant, Major General Nguyen Quy Nhon, Deputy Commander of the Military Zone 5, said that the Ministry of Defense instructed the Military Zone 5 to set up a rescue team.

“Hydropower projects have contributed to the country’s social development, but we must put human safety above everything else. The contractor must report in detail whether any problems have occurred in the construction stage so that proper remedies could be identified,” the general said.

He also required that the project’s owner monitor the situation closely and report any new developments related to the safety of the dam.

Vu Duc Toan, deputy director of the Executing Board of the Hydropower Project No. 3, said that temporary measures have been taken to stop the water leakage, pending an official conclusion about the cause of the leak. Water that flowed out from many locations on the dam was being transmitted to the dam’s water collection.

He also said the board was well-prepared to cope with possible flooding in this year’s rainy and stormy season.
The plant’s reservoir contains as much as 730 million cubic meters of water and, at a height of 180 meters, if the dam is broken, many districts located at its base, including Bac Tra My, Tien Phuoc, Nong Son, Duy Xuyen, and Dien Ban, will suffer great damage, including human life, Nguyen Thanh Quang, director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, warned.

Nguyen Minh Tuan, chief of the office of the provincial Committee for Flood and Storm Prevention and Control, requested that the plant put staffs on duty around the clock at the dam to detect any abnormal signs.

Le Anh Tuan, deputy chairman of the Bac Tra My District People’s Committee, said he was waiting for an official report from experts so that the authorities could issue a notice to the public about the current status of the dam.

In its recent report, the Electricity Group of Vietnam said 80 percent of the water leakage from the dam has been fixed.

EVN also confirmed that the leak occurred at the expansion joints of the dam, not from any cracks on it.

“The dam has no cracks in its concrete structure and the current level of penetration of water into the dam’s body has not affected the safety of the facility,” EVN said.

The plant has been operating at full capacity to reduce the water level of the reservoirs, so that repair work to prevent further water penetration and leakage could be carried out, the group said.

Water leakage continued on March 27:


VNE/Tuoitre