📋 Tender Overview
The workshop Urban flooding - Challenges and mitigation measures presents the core causes, and proposes overall solutions in planning, infrastructure and governance to improve adaptability, towards sustainable urban development. General Secretary of the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations Nguyen Quyet Chien spoke at the opening of the Conference. Photo: VGP/ Ngoc Han On December 17, in Hanoi, the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations coordinated with the Vietnam General Construction Association to organize the Workshop Urban Flooding - Challenges and mitigation measures. Speaking at the opening of the Workshop, Mr. Nguyen Quyet Chien, General Secretary of the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations, said that the rapid urbanization process in recent years has revealed many challenges for sustainable urban development. Currently, the country has about 900 urban areas, the urbanization rate exceeds 44% and is expected to exceed 50% by 2030, but the concretization, leveling of ponds and lakes, and narrowing of canals are seriously reducing natural drainage capacity. According to statistics by 2024, urban areas will record about 397 flooded points, with an affected area of over 900 hectares; Flooding not only occurs in large urban areas but also spreads to small and medium sized cities, causing an estimated economic loss of 1-1.5% of urban GDP each year. Giving a keynote speech at the Conference, Dr. Dang Viet Dung, Chairman of the Vietnam Construction Association, emphasized the context of rapid urbanization and the increasingly serious impact of climate change. Urban flooding has become a major challenge for sustainable urban development in Vietnam. Many urban areas, especially large urban areas and regional centers, are regularly affected by heavy rains, high tides, sea level rise and overloaded drainage systems, causing significant economic losses, disrupting peoples lives, and posing potential risks of environmental pollution and urban insecurity. According to Dr. Dang Viet Dung, the increasingly serious, prolonged and difficult to predict flooding situation not only stems from climate change but also reflects limitations in the process of urbanization, technical infrastructure, urban management and planning thinking. In addition, the legal system on drainage and water supply is not synchronized, forecasting capacity and calculation models are limited, while the ability of urban areas to adapt to increasing climate risks is still inadequate. Meet practical requirements. Overall solution for urban areas in the Red River Delta. Speaking at the Workshop, experts discussed in depth the current situation of urban drainage systems, the causes of flooding, especially in large cities; international experience in urban drainage and lessons that can be applied to Vietnam; as well as solutions to reduce flooding in the context of climate change and strong urbanization. Prof. Dr. Tran Duc Ha, former Director of the Institute of Water Supply and Sewerage Research (Vietnam Water Supply and Sewerage Association) presented the paper. Photo: VGP/ Ngoc Han Reality shows that Vietnams current system of laws, regulations and standards mainly approaches urban rainwater from the perspective of drainage, while there is a lack of mandatory regulations on water storage, infiltration, reuse and cyclical management of rainwater. Elements such as lakes, trees, and permeable surfaces are considered solutions to support drainage, but have not been integrated into a system that uses rainwater on purpose. Considering urban rainwater as a resource that needs to be managed synchronously is no longer an experimental choice but an inevitable requirement, contributing to reducing flooding, promoting ecological and environmental values and improving urban adaptation to climate change. Traffic congestion and flooding are dual impacts with an interrelated relationship in the urbanization process; A separate approach between traffic expansion and drainage improvement easily causes waste and limits efficiency. Experience from other countries also shows that only integrated planning, connecting traffic, drainage, green space and smart management technology can ensure sustainable urban development. To escape the vicious cycle of traffic jams - flooding, Vietnamese cities need to soon innovate their thinking towards integrated and inclusive planning (UN-Habitat), and flexibly apply models such as green - smart urban areas, compact urban areas, sponge urban areas and urban areas. resilience - sustainability. To solve flooding in urban areas in the Red River Delta, it is necessary to deploy comprehensive solutions, synchronously combining techniques, management mechanisms, raising community awareness and strengthening human resources. Technical solutions include both structural works such as improving the drainage capacity of rivers, canals, lakes, pumping stations, sewer systems and non-structural solutions such as reviewing and adjusting drainage planning in accordance with urban development and the impact of climate change. In addition, building a data center and operating an urban drainage system is necessary to ensure effective operation. Solutions need to be implemented along a short, medium and long-term roadmap, towards developing safe, ecological urban areas and sustainably adapting to natural disasters. Solving floodingFloods in Hanoi cannot rely solely on simple structural solutions but require multidisciplinary thinking, integrating irrigation, environment and architectural planning, in which urban space management plays a key role. Urban development towards concrete and obstruction of natural flow will invalidate all efforts to improve the drainage system. Hanoi needs to change planning thinking towards living together and making space for water, associated with controlling construction density, increasing water surface area, green space and drainage corridors in urban ar
