Hoan Kiem Lake , an important symbol of Hanoi

Hanoi (VNA) – Hoan Kiem Lake , an important symbol of Hanoi , might be
restored for the first time using a low-impact environmental German technology
pending approval from the municipal People’s Committee.

The 2.4 million USD project is among a dozen initiatives as a result of a
cooperation agreement signed on June 2006 between the Ministry of Science and
Technology and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

It aims to remove sludge in the lake to provide a sustainable, clean environment
for water species.

According to Dr Le Hung Anh, the project secretary, the highlight of the technology
is thatwater species and water would be kept together within the lake itself, while
the whole process of sludge removal is carried out.

The device, a Serditurtle, will use buoyancy to dip and rise like a submarine.
Minimum turbulence and release of toxic compounds will be ensured, the surrounding
water and eco-system are thus left unaffected.

Vietnamese and German experts have said that they would use the device to suck
toxic sludge which is up to several metres deep from the bottom of the lake. The
device will crawl on the lake bed using two corkscrew-like spirals that dig up and
funnel the mud into a pipe while also propelling the device forwards.

Anh further added that the sludge removal technology had been successfully proven
in removing the sludge from Uncle Ho’s fish pond this month.

“The pond houses a large population of fish and there has not been a single fish
reported dead as a result of the sludge removal,” he said.

Sharing the same view, Associate Professor Ha Dinh Duc, Vietnam’s pre-eminent
researcher on turtles at the Hanoi University of Science - better known here as the
“Turtle Professor” – said the German technology was the most suitable
among those presented from Japan, Thailand and elsewhere.

Situated in the heart of Hanoi , the algae-green lake is home to an elusive turtle
that plays a key role in Vietnam folklore. It depicts the story of a Vietnamese
emperor trying to figh back an invasion by the Chinese with a precious sword. As he
sailed upon the lake, after the country had regained independence, a turtle
surfaced and took back the sacred sword, in case the next generation needed to use
it to defend the nation. The lake and the turtle itself are famed for their beauty
and have become symbols of Vietnam ’s struggle for independence. This is why
the municipal People’s Committee has sought assurance that the water species are
protected during the clean-up.-Enditem