Improvements to Canal 5 in Stung Meanchey III commune of Phnom Penh’s Meanchey district are underway ahead of potential flooding in the rainy season.
Officials in charge of sewage, pumping and treatment at Municipal Department of Public Works and Transport are completing the work to prevent flooding of residents’ houses.
Department director Duong Chansarath said on June 22 that officials are clearing the canal to partly prevent rainwater from flowing into the Boeung Tompun canal and redirect its flow into Choeung Ek Lake.
“Canal 5 is more than 1,000m long and between 15 to 30m wide. It stretches from Veng Sreng street to the Canal 5 pumping station. We have used excavators to remove rubbish from the canal and dumped it in a landfill,” he said.
According to Chansarath, work on the canal will take three weeks staring from June 19.
After completion, the canal will drain rain water in Por Sen Chey, Sen Sok and Meanchey districts as rain water there drains into the canal and flows to a pumping station. It then flows into Moul canal and the French canal with Choeung Ek Lake as the final destination.
He said Canal 5 is currently full of rubbish, mud and sugarcane waste thrown in by residents which causes water blockages.
“I ask the public to dispose of rubbish properly by not throwing it into the canal as it will block the flow of water to the pumping station, especially in the coming rainy season,” Chansrath said.
Community Sanitation and Recycling Organisation executive director Heng Yon Kora said the environment in the capital has improved in recent years because people are more aware of the issues, especially concerning rubbish disposal.
He said alleys along canals are normally small and not accessible to rubbish collectors. This leads to people throwing waste into the canal or burning it.
“Through interviewing some residents, they said they pay $1 per month through their electricity bill, but the rubbish collection service wasn’t reaching their homes. There are no public rubbish bins along the streets,” he said.
