Lao Cai Province has reported that, in response to the recent floods, several small and medium-sized hydropower plants along the Chay River system have released water, causing inundation in many riverside communities.
To investigate this matter, the provincial Department of Industry and Trade has formed an inspection team, along with the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development as well as the People's Committees of Simacai, Bac Ha, and Bao Yen districts.
The team will examine the reservoir operation procedures and flood discharge procedures of hydropower plants such as Si Ma Cai, Pa Ke, Bac Ha (Coc Ly), Bao Nhai (level 1), Bao Nhai (level 2), Nam Luc, Vinh Ha, and Phuc Long.
Deputy Director Nguyen Truong Giang of the Lao Cai Province Department of Industry and Trade shared that preliminary findings indicate that most of these hydropower plants have strictly adhered to reservoir operation and flood discharge procedures.
However, to reach a more precise conclusion, the inspection team must gather more documents and cross-reference information from multiple sources. Once the official results are available, the Lao Cai Province Department of Industry and Trade will report to the provincial People's Committee to determine appropriate actions and hold accountable any hydropower plants found to be in violation (if any).
As previously reported by SGGP Newspaper, due to heavy rainfall on August 5, 2024, several hydropower plants on the Chay River system in Lao Cai and Yen Bai provinces released water, causing severe flooding in several communes of Bao Yen and Bac Ha districts (Lao Cai Province), and Yen Binh, Luc Yen districts (Yen Bai Province), as well as Yen Son district (Tuyen Quang Province).
Bac Ha Hydropower Plant was the first to release water at a flow rate of 2,779 m3/s. Subsequently, other downstream hydropower plants, including Bao Nhai 1 and Nam Luc, also released water simultaneously. The rapid rise in water levels forced Thac Ba Hydropower Plant in Yen Bai Province to urgently open its spillway gates (up to three gates at the same time) to ensure the safety of the structure.
The released water caused severe flooding in Thac Ba Town and several communes in Yen Binh District (Yen Bai Province) and some communes in Yen Son District (Tuyen Quang Province). In Yen Bai Province, 79 houses and woodworking workshops were inundated.
In Lao Cai Province, 37 houses and 108 hectares of agricultural land were severely affected, along with significant damage to infrastructure and transportation.
In the afternoon of August 8, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development issued a dispatch requesting the directors of Tuyen Quang Hydropower Co. and Thac Ba Hydropower JSC. to close one bottom outlet gate of Tuyen Quang Hydropower Plant and one spillway gate of Thac Ba Hydropower Plant, starting at 6:00 p.m. on August 8.
