Red River is now blue
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In the past few days, the Red River’s water has turned into dark blue from its traditional redness and the river stinks badly as water level is dropping sharply.
Red River or Song Hong is the most famous river in the north, being named after the water’s time-honored redness.
But by the morning of February 17, the dark blue water appeared, having spread 10km from Coc Leu Bridge to Xuan Tang ward in Lao Cai province.
Some fishermen said they couldn’t catch any fish in the past few days from the blue waters.
Pham Van Hung, a resident living at Coc Leu former ferry station near the river, told Tuoi Tre that although he closed the door, but he couldn’t bear the horrible smell seeping in from the river.
“I have little appetite left due to the smell,” he added.
Like Hung, many residents living in Coc Leu ward alongside the river banks also complain about the unbearable odor.
The water was reported on February 14 to be normal with a pH level ranging from 6,5-7.
owever since the morning of February 15, pH has increased up to 8, according to Luu Minh Hai, deputy director of Lao Cai northern province’s Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting.
According to him, the river is suffering from serious pollution caused by organic wastes.
The Red River, known as Sông Hồng in Vietnamese, flows from southwestern China through northern Vietnam to the Gulf of Tonkin. It enters Vietnam through Lao cai nothern province bordering China. The reddish-brown heavily silt-laden water gives the river its name. The Red River is notorious for its violent floods with its seasonally wide volume fluctuations. The area surrounding the river – the Red River delta - is a major agricultural area of Vietnam with vast area devoted to rice. The land is protected by an elaborate network of dykes and levees. In the 19th century, the river was thought to be a lucrative trade route to China. |
