Some lakes and ponds in Hanoi have disappeared during the urbanization, while many others are getting narrowed, and many of them are getting seriously polluted.
According to the Hanoi Construction Department, there are 111 ponds and lakes in Hanoi which cover a total area of 1165 hectares. The total area of lakes has decreased sharply during the urbanization, while a lot of them have disappeared. It is estimated that 80 percent of the lakesides have got polluted, 71 percent of lakes have suffered from pollution, 26 percent of the lakes still do not have embankments, while 8 percent of lakes have partial embankments.
Environmentalists have called on to take urgent actions to protect the remaining lakes, or they would also disappear one day.
Showing the electricity pole, which was 100 meters far from the Quang Trung lakeside, Phuong, the owner of a tea shop said that in the past, the lakeside reached to the electricity pole.
“The houses on the other side of the lake are located on the place which used to be the lake. However, local residents have encroached on the lakes to get land for building houses. As a result, the lake has got narrowed,” Phuong said.
“The place where I am sitting was also the surface of the lake. When I was small, I did not dare to go there because of the deep water,” she added.
The Quang Trung Lake in front of the Tuoi Tre Park is one of the seven lakes which still can exist in Hai Ba Trung district.
Local residents said that the lake once covered an area of 10,000 square meters, but it has got smaller. People try to encroach on the lake, then build houses and restaurants on the lakeside. As the local authorities built embankment, the lake encroachment has been stopped.
A lot of other lakes in Hanoi are suffering the same situation. A lot of ponds and lakes have disappeared. On the places, which were once the lakes, a lot of urban areas or apartment blocs have arisen.
The noteworthy thing is that the area of lakes has been decreasing rapidly. In 1986-1994, the area of lakes decreased by 16 hectares. One year later, in 1995, 23 more hectares of lake area disappeared.
The West Lake, which once covered an area of 500 hectares, equal to 50 percent of the total area of lakes and ponds in Hanoi, has also been narrowed to 446 hectares.
The Linh Quang Lake’s area has reduced from six hectares to 5.2 hectares. The lakes and ponds have been replaced with houses and other civil construction works.
Hanoi is the city with the highest number of lakes and ponds in Vietnam. This is considered a unique beauty of the land with thousands of years of culture. This has a high historical and cultural value. Besides, the lakes and ponds in Hanoi play a very important role in regulating the water level and prevent flooding for the capital city.
According to Truong Quang Hoc from the Vietnam Association for Conservation of Nature and environment in early twentieth century, Hanoi had 600 -750 ponds and lakes. However, the number has dropped to 100.
Meanwhile, the lake encroachment by local residents continues. They throw construction waste, earth and rubbish on the lakeside areas. Meanwhile, waste water discharges to the lakes, causing thicker layers of mud at the lake bottom, thus reducing the area and the capacity of the lakes.
In an effort to protect the lakes, the Hanoi’s authorities have kicked off the project on upgrading the lakes in the inner city.