Be Island lacks clean water for daily use.

Be Island currently has 110 households with over 500 inhabitants. To partially meet the residents' need for fresh water, in 2012, the island received investment support for a desalination plant. In addition, residents have to store rainwater in tanks for use during the hot season. However, every year around April, when Ly Son enters its tourist season and the number of visitors increases, a shortage of drinking water occurs.

Be Island is in its peak tourist season, so the demand for fresh water for daily use is high. Photo: X.THIEN

To obtain water for personal use and to serve tourists, residents have to buy fresh water from the main island at a rather high price. Ms. Tran Thi Mai, from the smaller island, said that for a long time, residents have been supplied with fresh water from the An Binh Water Plant, but they have to pay for it. To have enough water, people also store rainwater in tanks. However, during the hot season, when their reserves run out and the plant doesn't have enough water to supply, residents have to buy water transported from the main island, at a price of 250,000 - 300,000 VND per cubic meter, which is very expensive.

The seawater desalination plant on Be Island has a designed capacity of 100 cubic meters per day. However, in reality, it only operates at 47% of its designed capacity. Mr. Pham Van Loc, an operator at the An Binh Water Plant, said that the plant has two generating units, but currently only one is operational, thus not enough to supply water to the people. We hope that the authorities will pay attention and invest in repairing the damaged unit, or invest in an additional generator so that the unit can be more proactive in desalinating seawater during high tide, thus meeting the people's freshwater needs.

According to the Chairwoman of the Ly Son District People's Committee, Pham Thi Huong, if all the An Binh Water Treatment Plant units are operational, they will supply approximately 60-70% of the freshwater needs of the residents of Be Island. The remaining residents will have to rely on rainwater for storage. During periods of intense heat and severe water shortages, the district will release water from the island's reservoirs to support the residents. The district is also requesting Doosan Vina and relevant district agencies and units to survey and inspect the equipment to repair damaged units and bring them back into operation. In the long term, to ensure water supply for the island's residents and to serve tourists staying there, Ly Son District proposes that the province continue to invest in infrastructure for Be Island, including the construction of a domestic water supply system and the national power grid.

X.THIEN

RELATED NEWS AND ARTICLES:

Source: https://baoquangngai.vn/xa-hoi/202504/dao-be-thieu-nuoc-sinh-hoat-e7301ce/