Suffering from smelly water and limescale

Located at the gateway of Hoa Binh province, Thinh Minh commune (Hoa Binh city, Hoa Binh province) is known to many people as the place where Song Da clean water factory (belongs to Song Da Clean Water Investment Joint Stock Company) is located. However, about 1,600 people of the commune have suffered for a long time due to lack of clean water for daily use.

The family of Mr. Nguyen Van Hung (49 years old, residing in Vat Lai village) lives right next to the Song Da water plant, but for nearly 20 years now, their only option is to use a drilled well.

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Nguyen Van Hung's family lives next to the water plant but still has to use well water. Photo: Nhi Tien

According to Mr. Hung, every day when he opens the door he sees the clean water factory, but when he bends down to see the well water full of lime residue and a fishy smell, he feels sad.

“No authority has tested the quality of well water to know the exact situation. For a long time, my family members and I often had rashes when bathing with well water,” Mr. Hung shared.

A few hundred meters from Mr. Hung's house, Mr. Nguyen Minh Thuan and his wife have also struggled with the problem of finding a clean water source for over a decade. The water source that Mr. Thuan's family is using is not better than that of other households in the area.

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Mr. Thuan's family has to use unsafe water despite many complaints. Photo: Nhi Tien

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong (Mr. Thuan's wife) said: "Compared to many other families in the village, my family is still lucky, because there are households that do not even have well water to use, they have to use water that has a very unpleasant fishy smell."

Coming to Thinh Minh commune, walking along the village roads, it is not difficult to see dozens of black water taps pouring out from the bushes. According to the people, due to the scarcity of water, although spending a lot of money to hire people to drill wells, not everyone is lucky enough to find a water source. Some families have drilled 2-3 times but still failed, some families have drilled for water but the quality of the water is full of impurities, cloudy so they dare not use it for eating and drinking.

Because they cannot actively find well water, many people in the commune have to use water from streams.

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Ms. Hoang Thi Anh's family only uses well water for bathing, not cooking. Photo: Nhi Tien

Ms. Hoang Thi Anh (Vat Lai village) reflected: "My family's well water when pumped up is cloudy, has a bitter and fishy taste, if left overnight, the basin turns yellow. Therefore, I only use well water for bathing, not for cooking." To have clean water, her family relies mainly on water taken from the mountain stream.

“When it rains, the water is polluted because the stream is located near a construction site. During the dry season, the stream water is not enough for the family’s daily needs,” Ms. Anh said.

Many times petitioned the authorities

Faced with the above situation, answering VietNamNet, Mr. Nguyen Quoc Tuan, Chairman of the People's Committee of Thinh Minh Commune, said: Currently, the commune has 7,236 people with about 1,600 households. Households still use water from drilled wells and water from mountain streams.

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Song Da Water Plant in Thinh Minh Commune. Photo: Nhi Tien

According to Mr. Tran Van Truong, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Thinh Minh Commune, the lack of clean water for local people has existed for many years, and the commune government has repeatedly made recommendations to higher authorities. Hoa Binh City has developed a project to solve the problem of clean water for local people. However, the commune has not yet provided specific information on when it will be implemented.

"Clean water is an essential need for all people, not just Thinh Minh commune. Currently, due to the lack of water, people's daily life will become very difficult. Therefore, what households in the commune want is to have enough clean water for daily activities," Mr. Tran Van Truong shared.

* Lesson 2: People have not had clean water for 15 years, water plant says 'no retail'

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