Ministry warns about severe water shortages

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has warned that the water levels at northern reservoirs including Hoa Binh, Son La and Thac Ba are very low and will lead to water shortages.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has warned that the water levels at northern reservoirs including Hoa Binh, Son La and Thac Ba are very low and will lead to water shortages.

  

Hoa Binh Reservoir

The ministry has sent an official document to the reservoirs' management boards about the issue and operational requirements as the dry season starts.

According to the ministry, the water level at Hoa Binh Reservoir was 98.9 metres, lower than the normal level by 18.1 metres. The water level at Son La Reservoir also dropped by 15.5 metres to 199.5 metres. The water level at Thac Ba Reservoir dropped by 5.4 metres to 52.6 metres.

The total three reservoirs only have 10.19 billion cubic metres of water, accounting for 54% of their capacity.

However, the water level at Hoa Binh, Thac Ba and Tuyen Quang reservoirs are required to reach a certain amount before the dry season. This year, the total amount of water at those three reservoirs is only 4.93 billion cubic metres, 2.74 billion cubic metres lower than required.

It is also predicted that the rainfall in October in the northern region will be lower than previous years by 20-40%, posing a high risk of water shortage to the north.

The ministry has asked the management board to save water and report on problems in order to ensure water security for the Red River Delta.