Flood-hit lives in Bangladesh rescued by PowerChina's river training project

Workers perform river training activities at a site of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge River Training Works project in Munshiganj on the outskirts of Dhaka, Bangladesh on May 31, 2023. (Xinhua)

Much to the delight of local farmers, the gradual implementation of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge Project River Training Works (PMBP-RTW) project, undertaken by PowerChina, has greatly eased the flood risks along the Padma river.

DHAKA, June 6 (Xinhua) -- "The River Training Works project keeps floods away from our homes, so that our farmlands and fishing areas remain viable," said MD Masud Rana, a resident in Janjira, living alongside the Padma river in Bangladesh.

The Padma is one of the biggest rivers in Bangladesh. Floods and erosion have long been a part of life for people in the areas alongside the massive river, especially as climate change has caused a significant increase in riverbank erosion in various parts of Bangladesh in recent times.

However, the people, like Rana, living in the Mawa-Janjira area have found great relief from the devastating effects of erosion along the Padma river, which has been largely attributed to the ongoing implementation of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge Project River Training Works (PMBP-RTW) project, undertaken by PowerChina, formerly known as Sinohydro Corporation Ltd.

Workers perform river training activities at a site of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge River Training Works project in Munshiganj on the outskirts of Dhaka, Bangladesh on May 31, 2023. (Xinhua)

The project, with a contract value exceeding 1.1 billion U.S. dollars, one of the largest single bidding projects for river training works in the world, was officially launched at the end of 2014, in order to effectively manage water disasters and provide protection for the Padma Bridge.

According to the project's parameters, the area of the PMBP-RTW surrounds the Padma Bridge and is perpendicular to it. The length of the project on the north bank is 1.5 km, while on the south bank, it extends for 11.5 km.

From the project site, geobag dumping barges can be seen carrying out the final patchwork. The 125-km geobags are precisely delivered deep underwater through the guide frame.

Workers place geobags through the guide frame on the geobag dumping barge at a site of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge River Training Works project in Munshiganj on the outskirts of Dhaka, Bangladesh on May 31, 2023.

"The accurate placement of geobags in underwater sections that are tens of meters deep has always been a challenge for our project team," said Li Shaohe, one of the project engineers, adding that after lengthy research and tests, the team designed a new geobag dumping barge.

The biggest feature of the barge is that the guide frame can accurately put the geobags under the water, taking into consideration factors such as water level and flow velocity, explained Li, adding that they have obtained a patent for this innovative technology.

The cutter suction dredger is another key device of this project.

Photo shows the cutter suction dredger working at a site of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge River Training Works project, Bangladesh on May 31, 2023. (Xinhua)

Project manager Yu Hao told Xinhua that the total volume of underwater dredging and back filling are completed by four large dredgers. These dredgers boast a high production rate of 3 million-4 million cubic meters per month and have also achieved a remarkable accuracy of plus or minus 25 centimeters for underwater slopes.

"This leads the field internationally and the unique core technology exclusively belongs to PowerChina," said Yu.

The water training efforts by the project team are essential not only underwater but also along the riverbanks.

According to Yu, the project has placed over 12 million precast concrete blocks on both sides of the river to prevent flooding and effectively guide water flow. Meanwhile, approximately 1.14 million square meters of vetiver grass, which is resistant to drought and becoming water logged, has been planted along the banks to protect the slopes.

Photo shows river training works at a site of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge River Training Works project in Madaripur, Bangladesh on May 31, 2023. (Xinhua)

The project also involves a massive volume of approximately 100 million cubic meters for dredging and trench back filling. In addition, the quantities of geobags and precast blocks also exceed tens of millions.

"This project at first was very challenging," said Robert Davinroy, deputy manager of construction and supervision consultant, adding that in the first couple of years, no one had ever built anything like this before.

"The project team is very efficient. They did things last year that in previous years it probably would have taken them two or three years to do," said the deputy manager.

In June 2022, the Padma Bridge opened to traffic, putting an end to the centuries-long history of residents in 21 districts of southern Bangladesh relying on ferries to travel to and from the capital city Dhaka. Nowadays,  the PMBP-RTW project is also nearing completion.

"In the past, during the rainy season, water used to increase rapidly, causing great hardship to the local residents. Their homes and lives were greatly affected by the erosion and floods," said Saifur Rahman Bhuiyan, an occupational health and safety specialist working on the project.

Workers perform river training activities at a site of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge River Training Works project in Munshiganj on the outskirts of Dhaka, Bangladesh on May 31, 2023. (Xinhua)

He said that since the gradual implementation of the PMBP-RTW project, the extent of damage caused by floods to their houses has significantly reduced. "The local people are very pleased with the positive impact brought about by this project."

"Our farmland was often destroyed by floods, and people in the village had to travel by boat if they went outside from their houses. But now these issues have been significantly resolved due to the PMBP-RTW project," said  Rana.

"The beautiful embankments and river views also attract some nearby residents to visit on weekends, allowing villagers to engage in small businesses and earn some money," Rana added.

The most significant achievement of the PMBP-RTW project is to prevent flood risks so as to ensure the operation of the Padma Bridge and reduce potential yet significant financial losses.

"We believe that through effective water training, water disasters' impact along the project will be greatly decreased in the future," Yu stressed.