According to many people in Phu Le 1 village, Binh Trung commune, Binh Son district, previously, households cultivated normally on Bau Sen field. However, when the Da Nang - Quang Ngai Expressway Project passed through Binh Trung commune, the canal was cut and a nearly 1m diameter culvert was installed to lead water across the road. Because the culvert was placed about half a meter higher than the old ditch, water could not flow through the canal as before. As a result, about 10 hectares of rice fields of hundreds of households in Phu Le 1 village, Binh Trung commune were abandoned for 10 years due to lack of irrigation water. Currently, weeds are growing all over this field.
Talking to reporters, Mr. Huynh Ngoc Tien - Phu Le 1 Village - said: "Before the highway was built, the B381 canal was very good for irrigation. Since the highway was built, they left a culvert but it was too high, water could not flow through. Without water, people could not sow rice. As for the drainage canals, the highway project did not dredge them, causing flooding over a large area. People asked the authorities at higher levels to support funding to rebuild the canals and improve the fields so that people could produce crops more conveniently."
Over the years, at meetings with voters, people have repeatedly complained about the situation where the culverts across the highway are placed higher than the irrigation ditches, preventing water from flowing through, making 10 hectares of rice fields unable to produce due to lack of water, which means the livelihoods of households are cut off. Extremely frustrated, people have also petitioned authorities at all levels and related units to promptly find solutions to provide water for production, but to date this situation has not been resolved.
Mr. Nguyen Tuong Chuan - Chairman of Binh Trung Commune People's Committee - said: "Irrigation canal B381 from Ngo Trien passes through Bau Sen. Before the highway was built, this irrigation canal served about 10 hectares of agricultural land in the area, especially rice fields. After the highway is built, the culvert across the road will be about 50cm higher. The commune government hopes that the Highway Project Management Board, after exploitation, should restore the culvert or arrange a water pumping system through this culvert to ensure the amount of irrigation water for production for 10 hectares of Bau Sen field."
Irrigation water supply to Bau Sen fields has been interrupted for more than 10 years, causing more than 10 hectares of rice fields to be abandoned. This situation not only seriously affects agricultural production but also causes difficulties for the lives of hundreds of households in Phu Le 1 village, Binh Trung commune.
Speaking to reporters, Mr. Ung Dinh Hien - Vice Chairman of Binh Son District People's Committee - said that many plots of land in Bau Sen field were originally flooded areas. After the Da Nang - Quang Ngai Expressway project passed through, it cut off part of the irrigation canals, so the flooding became more severe. The district has allocated funds to restore production on about 5 hectares of land in Bau Sen field. For the remaining area, the district will continue to invest in a canal system to bring water to Bau Sen field in the dry season, so that people can restore production.
