VietNamNet Bridge – About five million square meters of surface area on Vam Co River is covered with water hyacinths, an indicator of serious environmental pollution.

Vam Co Dong, one of the two most important rivers in the southern region that plays a very important role in irrigation works and waterways transportation of Tay Ninh Province, has been clogged for many year with water hyacinth.

The real color of the Vam Co River water cannot be seen as the river is blanketed with deep blue water hyacinths.

A middle-aged man seen, who was sitting idly near the Ben Soi Bridge in Thanh Long Commune of Chau Thanh District, complained that he could not use the river for work.

“I have nothing to do now,” he he. “The water hyacinth makes me sad. If it does not go away soon, my family and I are going to starve to death,” Hung, the man, said.

Hung, like many other locals, have been earning their living by carrying farm produce on Vam Co Dong River for goods owners.

“No goods owner hirea us these days. And we dare not carry goods in such conditions,” he said, pointing to the thick layer of water hyacinth in front of him.

“It would take twice as much fuel,” he said. “And even with a higher fuel volume, I am not sure if the boat can go through the thick water hyacinth cover”.  

Nguyen Duc Nhan, another local resident, said on “auspicious days”,  the days when he did not have to fight against water hyacinth, he could take six to seven trips carrying goods, earning VND300,000 for each. On bad days, he could take two trips only.

“We gather together gossiping and waiting for the water hyacinth to go away (when the boats get stuck on the river),” Nhan said.

To prove his words, Nhan pointed to the other side of the bridge, where there was a big junk, on which several men were seen drinking wine.

The owner of the junk was Le Dinh Hai, a local resident in Thanh Long Commune.

Hai said that everyone in the locality had problems because of the water hyacinth. Some days ago, Hai got stuck amid a mass of water hyacinth on the way back home after he had examined rice fields on the other side of the river.

Hai then called his relatives to ask for help. However, the relatives also got stuck on the river for several hours.

Trinh Van Lo, deputy director of the Tay Ninh provincial Transport Department, said that water hyacinths had been growing rapidly because of the waste water discharged from starch and rubber latex processing workshops on both sides of the river.

“In the dry season, the river gets depleted and the pollution becomes more serious, and water hyacinths grow more rapidly,” Lo said.

Not only waterways carriers, but hundreds of households earning their living from fisheries and aquaculture have also suffered from the water hyacinth problem.

“No aquatic creatures can live in such conditions. Water hyacinths cover the entire surface area, so there is no space left and no oxygen for fish,” said Nguyen Dinh Van, who has been fishing for 30 years.

Chi Mai