Resettlement area near the quarry wall
In mid-March 2025, in the An Tien resettlement area, Hung An commune, Bac Quang district (Ha Giang), over 20 households have built houses and moved in. This resettlement area was built for 37 households in Hung An commune whose land was reclaimed to implement the Tuyen Quang - Ha Giang expressway project.
Compared to the old place of residence, the infrastructure of electricity, water, and traffic roads in the resettlement area has been built synchronously, helping people gradually stabilize their lives. However, because this resettlement area is located right next to the stone quarry of Phuong Dong Company Limited, many people are still very worried.
As a resident living near the quarry wall, Mr. Vo Quoc Khanh said that the distance between his house and the quarry gate was less than 100m. The fact that the resettlement area is located close to the quarry has many environmental consequences.
"Every day, hundreds of heavy trucks run around, causing damage to roads and traffic safety. The mine blasted, causing shaking, dusty, every house had to be closed, the air was polluted, greatly affecting health, said Mr. Khanh.
Recently, Mr. Nguyen Cong Doan's family moved to the resettlement area to live in since June 2024, the new house was almost completed but the worries and insecurities kept growing.
According to Mr. Doan, the resettlement area is too close to the quarry, many houses have just been built and have appeared a series of cracks.
"I also don't understand why resettlement is planned right next to the quarry. People have handed over all their land, so they have to accept living here. Living here is both dangerous and pollutes the environment due to blasting and stone transportation, Mr. Doan was upset.
Talking to a reporter from Lao Dong Newspaper, a leader of Hung An Commune People's Committee said that the locality has received many complaints from people about the impact of the quarry's activities on life and the environment and has requested the mine owner to fix it.
Living in insecurity
For nearly 4 months now, unfinished houses in the resettlement area of Buu Nghieu village, Phu Luu commune, Ham Yen district (Tuyen Quang) have remained unchanged. The reason is the unusual subsidence in the land of a household during the construction of a house.
According to the reporter's records at the end of March 2025, all construction activities in this resettlement area have been temporarily suspended. The unusual subsidence location of Mr. Ly Tien Dung's land plot has been fenced with tarpaulins and warning ropes.
Subsidence occurred both inside and outside the house. According to local people, the sinkholes appeared from noon on December 12, 2024 with an area of about 6m2, a depth of 3.5m, and a runway along the 4m long concrete foundation.
Ms. Luong Thi Uong, a household living in the resettlement area, said: "People in this area are very worried, so far there have been no conclusions. Some families have just built a scaffolding to build a house, but seeing the subsidence, they dismantled it and went elsewhere."
According to the reporter's research, the residential area - resettlement area of bia Nghiao village is planned for 48 plots of land. Up to now, only 2 households subject to the resettlement of Tuyen Quang - Ha Giang Expressway have moved in. The infrastructure is not yet complete, people have to pull electricity and drill wells to have domestic water.
Speaking with reporters, Mr. Le Van Thai - Director of the Ham Yen District Investment and Construction Project Management Board (representative of the investor of the Ham Yen District Expressway Resettlement Area) said that as soon as the subsidence was discovered, the provincial authorities inspected and requested the Geological Institute to come and survey and evaluate.
"We are currently waiting for enough time to announce the results, because it involves human life, so we need to do it carefully. After determining the specific cause, if we can still live, let people continue to build houses, if we can't live, we will find another area for people to stabilize their lives," said Mr. Thai.
According to Mr. Thai, the exact cause is still waiting for the specialized agency. However, initial assessment may be that people drilled wells leading to the geology of the affected area, but that is just a feeling.
When asked about the time to start construction of resettlement areas, if the investor has researched and initially assessed geology, Mr. Thai said: "According to regulations, rural residential areas with houses built under 3 floors do not necessarily have to have an initial geological assessment".
