VietNamNet Bridge – A lot of advanced technologies have been invented to help sterilize polluted water. However, Vietnamese farmers in the flood stricken areas still cannot approach the technologies.

According to Dr. Tran Hong Con from the Hanoi University for Natural Sciences, a member of the Hanoi National University, in floods, sanitation works, sewers, fields and livestock farms get submerged in water, while the waste from different sources drifts with the current, which makes the water seriously polluted. Therefore, treating the polluted water to get clean water for daily use is the urgent task people have to do after the floods.

In order to have clean water for daily use in case the floods strike down, people have been sterilizing polluted water with alum and Chloramine B, the method they have been applying over the last many years.

At first, people pour alum into water to clean it (the sediments will settle down). After that the cleaned water will be filtered through fabric. Finally, they put Chloramine B into the water to sterilize it.

The method is cheap, quick handling and easy to use. However, there is a disadvantage that the use of chloramine B causes unpleasant odors and chlorine compounds.

According to Dr. Nguyen Hoai Chau from the Environment Technology Institute, an arm of the Vietnam Science and Technology Academy of Vietnam, Chloramine B was used in the world 50 years ago. The chemical has been no more used in many countries in the world.

Scientists believe that Chloramine B can only help sterilize water. This means that the water sterilized with Chloramine B can still be harmful to people, because there could be other elements in the water, such as heavy metals (iron, manganese and magnesium).

Dr. Con believes that if using Chloramine B for a long time and with a big quantity, it would harm people’s health. It would be acceptable if using the chemical for a short period and with reasonable doses. In general, storms and floods only attack for some days.

However, Con thinks that it is necessary to think of the technologies which can provide safer water, such as water purifier.

At present, when Chloramine B is still the first choice for people, they need to follow strictly the procedures to sterilize water.

Chloramine B should be used only during the flood days. When the floods go down, it is necessary to clean water wells to get new clean water.

Agreeing with Con, Dr Chau said while waiting for alternative solutions, people need to be very cautious when sterilizing water with Chloramine B. They need to clean water first with alum, before sterilizing water with Chloramine B.

When putting Chloramine B into water to sterilize water, people can take out some dirt, but at the same time, they may insert harmful chemicals to the water.

Also according the expert, Vietnamese scientists have suggested some solutions to the treatment of polluted water in flood areas.

The scientists from the Environment Technology Institute have recently introduced the nano technology based solution - composite Ag – Silica. The water purifier does not need electricity to run. It only needs the natural water pressure to operate perfectly. The machine can filter tiny particles, deodorize, filter heavy metals, and pesticide residues…

Kien Thuc