The Japan International Cooperation Agency and the Institute of Transport Science and Technology (ITSC) under the Ministry of Transport jointly held a recent conference in Da Nang to review a project to develop landslide risk assessment technology along Viet Nam's transport arteries.

Japanese specialists discuss the project (Source: baogiaothong)

The project is part of a 6-year cooperation programme between Viet Nam and Japan that will conclude in November this year.

According to Assistant Prof. Dr. Nguyen Xuan Khang, the Head of the ITSC and the project’s Viet Nam Director, said that the Ministry of Transport approved the project in 2012 and assigned the institute to implement it until 2016.

The direct goal of the project was to reduce disasters caused by landslide along Viet Nam’s transport arteries through the development of risk assessment technologies, while its long-term objectives included the nationwide application of these technologies to ensure the safety of main transport routes.

Under the project, importance was also attached to installing landslide monitoring devices in the Hai Van railway station and helping alert the Viet Nam Railway Corporation and local government of landslide risks in the site to make necessary evacuation.

Meanwhile, Dinh Van Tien, the Director of the project’s Management Board, noted that Viet Nam is now facing a high risk of landslide, especially in mountainous areas, due to heavy rainfall and complicated terrain.

Japanese ODA-funded projects between 2011 and 2016 have helped Viet Nam train personnel and develop equipment and a standard system to assess landslide risks, contributing to preventing and reducing disasters in the future.

At the same time, Kieu Thuong, the Vice Director of the Quang Nam-Da Nang Railway JSC, remarked that the landslide monitoring system in the Hai Van pass will help the railway sector actively respond to natural disasters, ensuring the safety of passengers and their property.

According to the National Steering Committee for Storm and Flood Prevention and Control, 250 flash floods and landslides during 2000-2014 left more than 640 dead and missing, and injured about 350 others. Nearly 10,000 houses collapsed and more than 100,000 others were flooded. Floods also affected 75,000 hectares of rice and crops. Total losses were estimated at 150 million USD, the committee reported.

(Source: VNA/ Da Nang Today)