Helen Clark

HANOI, Nov 19 2009 (IPS) – As Vietnam s big cities are increasingly deluged by floods, the infrastructure cannot keep up.
At the end of October last year Hanoi suffered the worst floods in over 50 years. Some streets were under more than two metres of water, resulting in a death toll of 20, many as a result of electrocution from makeshift wiring; others from drowning. Photos of people fishing in the streets made headlines, but after the waters receded, people began to question their city s underperforming infrastructure.

Last year s floods were blamed on the heaviest rains in 24 years. However, Hanoi s sub-tropical climate means that every year monsoonal rains hit the 1,000-year-old city. They flood main streets and labyrinthine back alleys, often to knee or waist depth. Sewerage can become a problem as garbage flows through the streets.

The rainy season is over in the north of Vietnam, but increased urbanisation and inclement weather mean the situation could worsen across the whole country. Based on a study by the International Centre for Environmental Management, an independent group that promotes ecologically sustainable development, two-thirds of southern Ho Chi Minh could be under water during storms by 2050.

Is it because it s raining more these days than in the past? Or is it because our city is so ill equipped and the infrastructure so poor that it cannot accommodate the increased population and the increased amount of sewage? asked one editorial in Thanh Nien News after particularly heavy flooding in late July.

The article pointed out that 30 percent of the city s lakes Hanoi has many had been drained and built over. These lakes and many canals form part of the drainage system.
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The infrastructure of the drainage system is not following the development of the city, Truong Thu Hien, sub-head of the planning department of the Hanoi Sewerage and Drainage Company (HSDC), told IPS via email.

Hanoi is located in a basin between the Red and Nhue Rivers and is naturally prone to flooding. Pipes are only able to carry some of the water from heavy rains, and the city lacks the resources for the needed improvements.

Capital is the biggest challenge for Hanoi as far as improvement of the drainage system is concerned, continued Hien. The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has been funding a two-stage project to improve pumping stations and drainage, and cover many open air canals.

New urban projects in the city s west are especially prone to flooding.

Construction inspectors have found many urban projects lack detailed planning on infrastructure, but they are still approved by Hanoi authorities. It s against construction laws, Ngo Trung Hai, deputy head of the Institute for Urban and Rural Zoning, which is under the Ministry of Construction, told Thanh Nien News in November last year. He said one way to address this issue would be to enlarge lakes, canals and smaller rivers.

With the flooding and current drainage systems open canals and small, stagnant lakes or ponds come health problems.

You might have an outbreak of diarrhoea, dengue. These are the two things that can happen after a flood, said Phowai Sha Zai, a water and sanitation specialist with the United Nations Children s Fund (UNICEF), told IPS via phone. Dengue can happen in some areas.

Reports vary, but according to local news, hospitals in Hanoi have treated anywhere between 7,000 and 9,000 cases of dengue fever this year. Such incidence is higher than those of the previous years, though no link has been published showing an increase in dengue and drainage conditions.

It is not just aged infrastructure struggling to keep up. A new underpass, which took three years to build and cost 26.2 million U.S. dollars flooded within half an hour of opening on June 16. The advanced JICA-funded Dai Co Viet-Dao Duy Anh Tunnel in the city s southern Dong Da district flooded so badly cars had to drive backwards to get out.

Based on local media reports, pumps to drain the tunnel were not working. The director of the project, Nguyen Sy Bao, claimed the pumps were working but the system to carry water to the pumps was not.

Trang Thi La, 47, who owns a clothing shop opposite the new tunnel, said the floods are very bad, adding that they cause lots of health problems, like dengue, and accidents.

Some of the smaller suburban lakes, which water drains into, can pose health risks as well. Smaller ponds can be more problematic. We suspect (they re a health issue) but haven t done a study. We know environmental health is dependent on sanitation in the vicinity, said UNICEF s Zai.

Truong Thi Hao, 72, knows full well the health hazards posed by flooding. Every day he is greeted by the sight of garbage and run-off from a nearby brewery that pollute the drainage canal on Doi Can Street, located beside his concession stand. He cannot wait for the time when the canal will be covered in the second stage of the JICA-funded project.

For now, Hao takes comfort in the thought that there were more floods 30 years ago. It was dirtier and worse than now. Garbage everywhere.