 How can Vientiane reduce its dust problem? A resident of Vientiane said: "At the beginning of the rainy reason, the amount of dust is going to increase. A lot of it comes from vehicles that collect mud on unpaved roads and then spread it around once things dry off. I think it's a very difficult problem to solve, but if more people try to understand maybe we'll reach some solutions. When it's raining, drivers should slow down and try to minimise the amount of dirt and mud they collect on their cars. And if people drive fast, that creates a lot of dust, especially when the roads are just beginning to dry off from the rain. If people slow down, it will also reduce the amount of dust that blows in the eyes of the motorbike riders or into the houses near the road." Ms Kham-On Heuangvilay, 23, said: "Much of the dust comes from trucks that collect mud in the countryside and then drive into town and spread it on the paved roads. I think the sector that is responsible for the problem should improve the roads that enter the capital city and start to pave those sections that are still just dirt. Or at least if they just add gravel, it will help to collect some of the dirt and prevent it from being carried into town." Mr Thongdam Lorvanhchieng, 36, a resident of Thongphanthong village said: "We could have a cleaner and more beautiful city if there weren't so many trucks carrying sand through town. The sand collects on trucks and also overflows onto the ground. But it's difficult to find a solution because we have roads that are specifically designated for trucks. So every vehicle has to drive on the same road. I think that the truck drivers should try to understand and when they drive in town, they should cover the sand and not carry too much in order to prevent it from falling on the road. If sand falls when it's raining, it turns to mud and then to dust when it dries." Mr Duangsili Vongxay, 17, a resident of Vientiane, said: "It depends on the location. Some places the roads are clean because there are street sweepers who clean up the sand and garbage along the road. Furthermore, there are water trucks that clean the roads along the riverbank and other main roads. However, there are many roads that don't get cleaned and are plagued by dust. It blows around and gets into our eyes, especially when cars and trucks drive fast. If possible there should be more efforts to clean the roads with water trucks after it has finished raining. And there should also be more people to clean the roadsides because that's where all the sand and garbage collects. If we can do these things, dust and garbage can be reduced and the roads will be much more beautiful and clean. All of this will help to not only reduce the dust in the city, but also really improve our living environment." Mr Thong Soulasy, 65, a resident of Donenoun village, said: "Along the Dong Dok road there is a lot of dust because people are digging up soil to sell. Every day there must be about 400 or 500 trucks that run along that road and some trucks drive in the town. Before those trucks reach the paved roads, they have to drive along the dirt roads and they bring a lot of it with them. And dust isn't the only problem, the trucks also create a lot of smoke. However at the end of last month, some of the dust was reduced because officials didn't allow trucks to run on certain roads because they were too heavy. If they're too heavy, they create potholes which collect even more dust. I think fewer trucks should be allowed to drive on certain roads that are aesthetic or unable to bare the truck's weight. I also think that the sand and soil industries should share some of the dust responsibility by cleaning their trucks and wetting their sand before they enter the city. They should also be responsible for cleaning the paved roads where their sand has fallen off. This would reduce a lot of the problem." |
This website is in no way affiliated with Google or any part of Google, Inc. All images and page design are Copyright © 2008 GoogleLaos.com All Rights Reserved. |