The Vientiane Department of Public Works and Transport has approved the assessment of drain systems in the nation’s capital to prevent flooding at the That Luang intersection.
According to local daily the Vientiane Times, a Hungarian company, Laoprojekt Zrt, was authorized to carry out the survey, which revealed that flooding at That Luang intersection is caused by a lack of proper maintenance and clogging by garbage and refuse.
Sedimentation caused by insufficient longitudinal fall is also a factor.
The company’s report also showed that the existing wastewater pipes, size P100, P80, and P60, do not have adequate water carrying capacity, facing problems in the flow path such that the drainage system could not flow properly during heavy rain.
Based on the report, the Water and Environment Engineering State Enterprise are drafting plans for cleaning and reconstruction of the drainage pipe system.
Cleaning will be undertaken by Vientiane’s Urban Cleaning and Decoration Service, followed by the maintenance and reinstallation of drain pipes at That Luang intersection.
780 meters of new pipes will be installed to resolve the issue of recurring floods.
The cleaning and installation work is being financed by the Hungarian Water Treatment Project, announced in 2018.
The project includes the extension of a water treatment plant at Dongbang and a new wastewater treatment plant and accompanying sewage network.
Cleaning of the existing sewage network began over the weekend and will continue for two weeks.
While cleaning the pipe system and installation of new pipes is expected to resolve the issue, it is hoped that the population can be educated about the problem of litter clogging drains.
