Freshwater prices climb to as high as VND150,000 a cubic metre
“The water shortage has driven up prices and forced users to save water by any means possible,” said Tran Minh Thanh, a local man from Binh Thoi Commune in Binh Dai District. “Some people have opted to take a bath with sea water and rinse off with a little fresh water.”
Thanh said the average consumption of about one cubic metre of clean water a month is now costing more than a month spending of rice.
Serious drought during dry season
Tran Van Bay, a communal cadre from Binh Thang Commune in Binh Dai Distrct, said, “This area is too close to the beach, so we often suffer a shortage of clean water for daily life whenever the dry season comes. Previously, a private company built a water pipeline but they halted operations due to salt water encroachment.”
Concrete water containers
Water is now fetching VND75,000 a cubic metre and as much as VND150,000 depending on transportation costs.
Local residents are worried that fresh water supplied by such vendors is not safe as it may have been drawn from wells and not treated at water filtration plants.
