Rice fields become "water reservoirs
In the last days of July, when many fields in Quy Mong commune were covered with the green color of newly planted rice, a corner of nearly 1ha wide field in Hanh Phuc village was still just a vast water area. The banks and fields were submerged in muddy water, many seedlings that were past their maturity were lying on the edge of the field waiting for the day to plant, but were powerless because the water had not receded.
Leading reporters to the flooded production area, Mr. Nguyen Van Khuyen - one of the affected households - pointed to the field in front and said that every year the family has completed rice cultivation from this time. This year, the water is nearly 1m deep, making it impossible to till the soil, bring machinery down to the field or transplant rice.
If this situation lasts, it is considered that the whole crop will be completely lost. All the money for seeds, land preparation, and seedling sowing is poured into the river and sea" - Mr. Khuyen said.
Not only Mr. Khuyen's family, 14 other households are also in a similar situation. According to reporters' records, the entire affected area is covered with water, many locations are flooded nearly 1m deep. Seedlings are past their maturity, weeds are starting to grow on the water surface while people only know to wait for the water to recede to be able to return to production.
According to people, prolonged flooding for many months has disrupted the entire production plan. Agricultural machinery cannot operate, and people cannot go down to the fields to transplant rice. If delayed further, this year's crop will almost have no chance of recovery.
Need to fix the drainage system
People reflect that the flooding situation appeared after the Tran Yen District Clean Water Plant Project invested by Yen Bai Clean Water Co., Ltd. was implemented.
Information recorded at the construction site shows that the project has a designed capacity of 12,000m3/day and night, with a total investment of more than 145 billion VND, and was approved for investment policy by the People's Committee of Yen Bai province (old).
People reflected that from April 2026, the construction unit proceeded to level the ground, fill the drainage canal to serve agricultural production, and then build a concrete culvert system to replace it. However, the drainage gate of the culvert was constructed about 1.5m higher than the rice field surface, making the water in the field unable to flow into the river as before.
When it rains, the water pours all into the field and stays there because the field is lower than the drainage culvert. We have petitioned many times but it has not been resolved yet" - a household reflected.
Mr. Nguyen Huy Thuong - Head of Hanh Phuc village - confirmed that 15 households are directly affected. After receiving people's petitions, the village has summarized opinions and reported to Quy Mong Commune People's Committee for consideration and resolution.
Talking to reporters, Mr. Pham Van Hoan - Chairman of Quy Mong Commune People's Committee - said that the locality has grasped the reflections of households and assigned specialized departments to coordinate with the investor to inspect the entire drainage system to determine the cause and propose handling plans.
According to Mr. Hoan, the local government's point of view is to thoroughly overcome the inadequacies arising during the project implementation, not to prolong the impact on people's lives and production activities. Currently, the Commune People's Committee is coordinating with the investor to handle the drainage system, helping people soon stabilize production.
