Hanoi's La Khe Canal Renovation Disrupts Residents with Dust and Mud

Hundreds of households living alongside the La Khe canal construction site in Hanoi are coping with thick dust on sunny days and slippery, mud‑laden roads after rain. Residents say they must keep doors closed and clean their homes repeatedly, while motorcyclists are forced to slow down and cover their faces.

The works are part of a major drainage‑improvement programme for western Hanoi that began in late 2015. After years of delay, contractors have accelerated excavation and soil‑removal to open the channel and boost the system’s flood‑control capacity. The project, approved in early 2013 with an investment of about 3.9 trillion VND, includes the Yen Nghia pump station and two regulating lakes, which have been operational since 2023 but cannot achieve full effect until the canal is cleared. Once completed, the system is expected to drain roughly 6,300 ha in Hoài Đức, Hà Đông and Từ Liêm and support water discharge for about 18,652 ha of urban development in western Hanoi. Residents remain hopeful that faster progress and additional road‑cleaning measures will restore normal daily life.