Hanoi (VNA) - With the monsoon approaching, the condition of hundredsof reservoirs in the central provinces of Ha Tinh, Quang Binh and Quang Tri hasincreased concerns of possible danger.

Funds allocatedfrom the government budget for repair work are insufficient, resulting in temporaryrepairs that do not ensure complete safety when water in the reservoirs reachesits peak.

A report byIrrigation Department in Ha Tinh province said 190 out of 350 reservoirs in theprovince are in bad condition due to deterioration over time. These include reservoirsin the districts of Huong Son, Nghi Xuan and Thach Ha, which could collapse anytime, department deputy director Tran Duy Chien said.

Chien added thatthe reservoirs were built some 40 years ago and repairs were not done annually.

Deposits lead tothe formation of layers on the reservoir beds, reducing their reserve capacity.This means more pressure on the reservoir walls when a high volume of waterpours into the reservoirs.

The condition ofthe reservoirs is also worrying local authorities of Quang Binh province.According to Nguyen Ngoc Phung, director of the province’s IrrigationDepartment, almost all reservoirs in the province were built in the 1970s andtheir walls were seriously damaged.

Phung said nooverall maintenance was conducted since then due to the lack of funds from thelocal budget.

Phung said therewere many holes on the reservoir beds, cracks on walls and loose sluice gates.Last year’s floods had only worsened the situation. Residents living in thelower parts of the reservoirs said they were forced to evacuate to safer placesdue to fears of the reservoirs collapsing.

According to theirrigation department, localities where the reservoirs were located had builtearthen embankments to store water for cultivation. However, these earthembankments were in danger of being washed away in the floods, Phung said.

The Department ofAgriculture and Rural Development in Quang Tri province reported that theprovince has 131 reservoirs for irrigation and agriculture. The reservoirs areas old as those in Ha Tinh and Quang Binh, resulting in similar concerns amonglocals with the flood season approaching.

Nam Thach Han, areservoir that was heavily damaged by floods late last year, had not beenrepaired properly, resulting in the fear that is could collapse in the comingflood season.

Trieu Thuong No2, another reservoir in Quang Tri, had a 55m crack on the upper wall that hadnot been repaired yet. The department’s staff expected the crack would increasewhen water in the reservoir reached its peak during the monsoon.

Authorities in HaTinh and Quang Binh have asked for Government support in installing monitoringtools for prompt release of water in case water in the reservoir reached analarming level.

Meanwhile, theMinistry of Agriculture and Rural Development has first responded to calls fromQuang Tri due to the critical condition of local reservoirs. The ministry willdisburse 1.2 trillion VND (53 million USD) for a grand overhaul of the mostdamaged reservoirs in the locality.-VNA