VietNamNet Bridge - People in Ha Tinh province, which has South East Asia’s largest iron ore mine, have not see the benefits from mining as promised. Meanwhile, they are experiencing tough days because of the lack of water.

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People in Ha Tinh province, which has South East Asia’s largest iron ore mine, have not see the benefits from mining as promised. Meanwhile, they are experiencing tough days because of the lack of water.
When reporters arrived at the mine site under the scorching sun, the road to the Thach Khe mine was deserted. There was only dust on the roadsides and parched fields.

For several years, local people have been suffering from mining. 

In the communes of Thach Khe, Thach Ban, Thach Dinh, Thach Hai, Thach Tri and Thach Lac of Thach Ha district, a serious water shortage has affected people’s lives and seriously damaged agricultural production.

In the communes of Thach Khe, Thach Ban, Thach Dinh, Thach Hai, Thach Tri and Thach Lac of Thach Ha district, a serious water shortage has affected people’s lives and seriously damaged agricultural production.
The Thach Khe mining project kicked off in 2009 with an aim to help develop the local economy and create jobs, thus allowing locals to escape poverty.

The then Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung affirmed that Thach Khe is a key mining project because it will provide important materials to the domestic steel manufacturing projects. 

However, Ha Tinh’s people still cannot see the benefits brought by the mining project, in the last seven years, while they are experiencing difficult days caused by project implementation. 

Pointing to a depleted small stream, a local man said the inconsiderable water in the stream is the ‘source of life’ of 2,000 people in the Thach Khe mining area.

The project implementation has lowered the aquifer. Meanwhile, the surface water has got infected with saline and alum.

A survey conducted by the Ha Tinh provincial Science & Technology Department showed that 60 percent of the water wells in Thach Dinh commune were not safe for use.

Deputy chair of the Thach Ban commune People’s Committee Nguyen Viet Hai, who has spent many years working in the locality, said local people have had to spend money to buy bottled water for the last six years.

“Our family, with three members, has to spend VND100,000 a month on fresh water,” he said.

There are 1,000 households in Thach Ban commune and 4,300 locals. It is estimated that every Thach Ban person has to spend at least VND30,000 on drinking water. 

They also have to spend time to travel many kilometers to get water.

The lack of water and the use of unsafe water in daily life, according to Vo Thi Thanh Ha, a healthcare officer, is thevreason behind the increased number of cancer patients in recent years.

Thanh Tra