The severe pollution of Hanoi\'s precious lakes is the main topic of a book introduced on October 14.
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| Linh Quang Lake in serious pollution |
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| Ambassador Michal Kral at the meeting |
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| Mrs Nguyen Ngoc Ly introducing the book |
The book, “Supporting the community in protecting lakes in six centre districts of Hanoi-Report on lakes in Ba Dinh, Hoan Kiem, Dong Da, Hai Ba Trung, Cau Giay and Tay Ho districts” explores the dangerous state of the water in Hanoi.
Water samples taken from more than 120 lakes in these districts showed that only 6 met the hygienic standards set forth by the survey with a limited amount of algae living in the water. Meanwhile, the majority of lakes is affected with organic substances, with 70% of them having substandard organic substance (DO) levels at below 4mg of DO per litre of water.
Six lakes have DO levels lower than 1mg per litre of water which kills almost all microorganisms. Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD5) surpasses acceptable levels in 71% of lakes; 14% suffer from severe pollution due to organic substances; 25% are heavily-contaminated and 32% show signs of pollution.
Over 80% of the banks of lakes which have not yet been embanked are heavily polluted and many of them are being turned into dumps and parking lots. For instance, Bung Ca Lake in Tay Ho District is being leveled to serve several construction works and Linh Quang Lake in Dong Da District now looks like a dumping ground.
Sewage discharged from households living around the lakes and the community is the main contributors to the problems.
At the book introduction meeting, Czech Ambassador to Vietnam, Michal Kral, praised the book for its environmental protection efforts.
Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, Nguyen Thai Lai, called upon the business community, research agencies and the public to join hands in saving Hanoi\'s lakes.
Director of the Centre for Environmental and Community Research (CECR), Nguyen Ngoc Ly said, "Through the book, we want to deliver a message that the whole community, especially people living around lake areas in Hanoi, should take specific measures to keep a clean environment and ensure ecological balance for the lakes.”
The book is a result of a project named “Preserving heritages-Protecting future: Towards sustainable protection of lake systems in Hanoi with community participation”.
The book was a joint project of the CECR, Hanoi University of Technology and University of Civil Engineering under the sponsorship of the Czech Embassy in Vietnam and the Vietnam Environmental Protection Fund.
