Severe landslides along the Dong Nai River have forced the provinces of Dong Nai and Lam Dong to suspend all sand mining activities, including those by licensed projects (Source: VNA)Dong Nai (VNA) - Severe landslidesalong the Dong Nai River have forced the provinces of Dong Nai and Lam Dong tosuspend all sand mining activities, including those by licensed projects.
The two provinces that the longest inland riverflows through have witnessed the most hectic sand mining activities in thecountry.
The order to halt sand mining holds good forthree months starting July 5.
The Dong Nai and Lam Dong administrations havesaid the temporary stop will be used to reassess remaining sand reserves in theDong Nai and Da Quay rivers as well as the environmental status of the riverbanks that have been hard hit by landslides in recent years.
It is evident that overexploitation of sand inthe Dong Nai River has deformed the riverbed, which has changed the water flowand hence eroded river banks, with hundreds of thousands of square metres ofsoil falling into the river.
According to a report by the Lam Dong People’sCommittee, landslides on the Dong Nai riverbanks affected at least 11.75ha inCat Tien district alone, with more than 107,500sq.m of soil disappearing in QuangNgai commune, while Phuoc Cat 1 and Phuoc Cat 2 communes have lost more than1,200sq.m and 8,800sq.m respectively.
Meanwhile, the Dong Nai Department of NaturalResources and Environment, has said that upstream sections of the Dong NaiRiver flowing through Tan Phu district and the Cat Tien National Park have beensuffering worsening landslides. About 14ha of river banks have been lost sofar.
While the havoc wreaked by landslides haspushed the Dong Nai and Lam Dong administrations to reduce their mining, therehas been no dent in the over-exploitation because there has been no inspectionor monitoring of the situation.
The two provinces have finally resorted to atemporary ban on all mining activities and agreed not to grant any licenses inthe meantime.
If the ban is enforced and illegal mining isdealt with effectively, the Dong Nai River can get some breathing space for thenext few months.
But whether the destruction will resume dependson how serious the authorities really are about saving the river for succeedinggenerations of residents.-VNA
The two provinces that the longest inland riverflows through have witnessed the most hectic sand mining activities in thecountry.
The order to halt sand mining holds good forthree months starting July 5.
The Dong Nai and Lam Dong administrations havesaid the temporary stop will be used to reassess remaining sand reserves in theDong Nai and Da Quay rivers as well as the environmental status of the riverbanks that have been hard hit by landslides in recent years.
It is evident that overexploitation of sand inthe Dong Nai River has deformed the riverbed, which has changed the water flowand hence eroded river banks, with hundreds of thousands of square metres ofsoil falling into the river.
According to a report by the Lam Dong People’sCommittee, landslides on the Dong Nai riverbanks affected at least 11.75ha inCat Tien district alone, with more than 107,500sq.m of soil disappearing in QuangNgai commune, while Phuoc Cat 1 and Phuoc Cat 2 communes have lost more than1,200sq.m and 8,800sq.m respectively.
Meanwhile, the Dong Nai Department of NaturalResources and Environment, has said that upstream sections of the Dong NaiRiver flowing through Tan Phu district and the Cat Tien National Park have beensuffering worsening landslides. About 14ha of river banks have been lost sofar.
While the havoc wreaked by landslides haspushed the Dong Nai and Lam Dong administrations to reduce their mining, therehas been no dent in the over-exploitation because there has been no inspectionor monitoring of the situation.
The two provinces have finally resorted to atemporary ban on all mining activities and agreed not to grant any licenses inthe meantime.
If the ban is enforced and illegal mining isdealt with effectively, the Dong Nai River can get some breathing space for thenext few months.
But whether the destruction will resume dependson how serious the authorities really are about saving the river for succeedinggenerations of residents.-VNA
VNA
