Despite an $800 million investment in the Yen Xa Wastewater Treatment Project, Hanoi’s To Lich River continues to suffer from untreated sewage and persistent delays.

On July 1, as West Lake discharged its flow into the To Lich River, the water color suddenly turned green, and the stench in the area significantly reduced. However, on the morning of July 2, the pitch-black color reappeared.

The city’s unique natural features with a dense network of rivers and lakes creates the distinctive geographical and beautiful, characteristics of the capital city.

To revive polluted canals, HCM City will have to clear 6,000 slums. It is estimated that the city will have to spend VND20 trillion for site clearance.

Once the project is officially operational, waste water from 150 main sewers along the banks of the To Lich River will be collected and treated before being discharged into the river.

HCMC has been trying to eliminate water pollution in its canals in order to improve the living environment for local inhabitants there.

Despite having gone under a renovation project, the signs of pollution in these streams are becoming more evident than ever.

The HCMC People’s Committee has approved a plan for renting garbage collecting machines to clean up the Saigon River over the next six months, with a budget of over VND8.5 billion.

 Industrial parks nationwide discharge more than a million cubic metres of wastewater each day, 75 percent of which is untreated and harmful, according to a workshop held in Hanoi on December 1.

VietNamNet Bridge – The entire basin of Dong Nai river system has to receive waste water discharged from over 4,500 sources, including factories, mining enterprises, craft villages, and residential areas.