Stop dredging floating sandbanks in the middle of Tien River

Tien Giang Floating sandbank with about 241,000 m3 of sand on Tien River will be retained, only concrete obstacles will be handled, due to the proposed amendment of waterway dredging regulations.

The information was announced by Mr. Tran Van Bon, Director of Tien Giang Department of Transport on the afternoon of October 26. The reason is that the Ministry of Transport is seeking opinions on the draft to replace Decree 159/2018 on the management of dredging activities in seaport waters and inland waterway waters.

"When there are new regulations, we will continue to thoroughly investigate whether dredging affects the waterway or not, and if dredging is done, whether it will be fully exploited or not," said Mr. Bon.

Tan Phong Islet is 50 meters from the Tien River bank, previously about one hectare wide, where people built businesses. After many years of erosion, the islet is now only 270 square meters wide. There are no houses on the islet, only a few concrete slabs from the old construction remain, submerged in the river, causing some passing boats to run aground and sink.

Tan Phong Islet in the middle of Tien River. Photo: Nam An — Tan Phong Islet in the middle of Tien River. Photo: *Nam An*

Last October, the Tien Giang People's Committee announced a list of dredging projects to clear the channel and collect sand and gravel in the eroded sandbank area. Accordingly, the sandbank area measuring 1,000 m long, 100 m wide and more than 5 m deep will be dredged and partially or fully used for other purposes by the winning bidder.

According to Mr. Bon, the Department of Transport has immediately asked for the opinion of the People's Committee of Tien Giang province to carry out the clearance and treatment of pillars and concrete blocks around the islet, which are the old houses and workshops of the people, to clear the riverbed and ensure safety of waterway traffic.

Decree 159 requires that basic dredging projects in seaport waters and inland waterways must be assessed for impact according to environmental protection regulations. In addition, some dredging projects and dumping of dredged materials into the sea must comply with regulations on establishing projects for dumping at sea and assigning sea areas according to the Law of the Sea of Vietnam and the Law on Marine and Island Environmental Resources.

For dredging and maintenance projects with a regular annual implementation volume, the impact assessment or environmental protection plan is implemented on an annual basis or in cycles of up to 5 years.

According to the Ministry of Transport, these regulations are not suitable for the time of dredging and maintenance as well as the storage capacity of the yard (some projects must be implemented within two years). Therefore, this agency believes that it is necessary to amend the implementation cycle of the above procedures to reduce budget costs and administrative procedures for dredging and maintenance projects of maritime routes.

Hoang Nam

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