Using water pipes and stews
The lack of clean water for daily life in the dry season has long been a constant concern for people in Bien Bach commune, Thoi Binh district, Ca Mau. This year's dry season is approaching, and the people here still have old worries.
Bien Bach commune has 70% of the area when drilling a well without fresh water, so most people just wait for rainwater and from the water supply station.
Mr. Tran Binh Dang (81 years old, Bien Bach commune) said that for a long time, people have had to store rainwater for use in the dry season. Although there are water supply stations, the water source is only enough for the first few months. For the past two and three years, the water supply has been erratic since the beginning of the dry season, and the quality has not been guaranteed.
According to Mr. Dang, any household with conditions can invest in large freshwater tanks and containers to store for use during the dry season, and if a poor household only keeps them in a tray, cannot use them for a few days.
Ms. Duong Thi Hang, in Bien Bach commune, said that during the dry season, there is little fresh water, so her family bathes, washes clothes with braised water and then splashes it on the fresh water.
Mr. Do Vu Luc, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Bien Bach commune, informed that the whole commune currently has about 500 households facing water shortages, of which 300 households have pipes from the Center for Clean Water and Rural Environmental Sanitation of Ca Mau province, but the water source is not guaranteed. The commune has proposed that superiors invest in additional water supply stations to serve local people, but they have not yet implemented them.
Mr. Le Cong Nguyen, Director of the Center for Clean Water and Rural Environmental Sanitation of Ca Mau province, said that the State has invested in a water supply station for Tan Bang and Bien Bach communes, with a capacity of 1,200m3/day and night, with a pipeline length of more than 100km. However, during peak times, many households use water, leading to water not reaching the households at the end of the pipeline.
"We will advise the competent authority to recommend the People's Committee of Ca Mau province to drill additional water wells for the existing plant. At the same time, the new water supply stations have completed the site and will be deployed for completion in September 2025, with 6 stations and pipelines, with a total capital of 180 billion VND".
Providing fresh water for people
The whole province of Ca Mau has more than 307,000 households, of which more than 233,000 households live in rural areas. According to a recent review by the provincial functional sector, the rate of rural households with access to clean water for daily use accounts for 94.52%. However, only about 17.47% of these households have access to a centralized water supply system invested by the State; the remaining more than 77% use water from individual wells. The remaining 5.48% of households (more than 12,700 households) in rural areas of the province lack clean fresh water.
In reality, due to the lack of additional fresh water sources, the domestic water source of Ca Mau residents is now mainly reserved during the rainy season and is exploited underground from the ground. Meanwhile, due to geological conditions, many places in the province cannot drill fresh water wells because the water is contaminated with salt and alum... Recently, some small-scale water supply stations that were invested in before have been damaged and degraded, not ensuring water supply for people.
Director of the Center for Clean Water and Rural Environmental Sanitation of Ca Mau province, Le Cong Nguyen, stated that in reality, many clean water projects have been invested in for a long time and need to be invested in further. Many water supply stations operate inefficiently due to lack of population concentration, and the water collected is not enough to cover the costs of management, operation, maintenance and repair of works.
Currently, the freshwater reservoir in Khanh An commune, U Minh district, Ca Mau has been completed, contributing to reducing the pressure of water shortage in U Minh Ha area. With an area of 102 hectares, a capacity of 3.85 million cubic meters, a total cost of more than 248 billion VND, the lake will provide clean water for more than 13,000 households and forest fire prevention and fighting. After accumulating water and operating stably, Ca Mau province called for investment in a water treatment plant to solve the shortage of domestic water and serve the work of forest fire prevention in the dry season.
