Evaluating the capacity of the sewerage systems in Ho Chi Minh City in the context of immigration and climate change

The sewerage systems in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) have been severely impacted by climate change. The sewerage has to bear the burden of generated wastewater by immigrants mainly from the Mekong Delta and the central coastal areas to HCMC, which is the consequence of climate change. This study assessed the capacity of the sewerage systems in HCMC by proposed 6 criteria and 31 indicators, which focused on the technological and engineering infrastructure; the society, management policy and environment; the planning; the equipment; and the finance (the criteria is in the order of its importance). The results showed that the current sewerage systems got 37/100 points, indicating overcapacity. The systems were also evaluated with the climate change scenario together with the predicted number of immigrants towards 2050. The results revealed that the sewerage systems possibly meet the demand in 2050 with the requirement of the planning completement. The solutions to reducing the pressure on the sewerage are (1) to complete construction of sewer pipeline system and wastewater treatment plants under planning; and (2) to prepare the finance for catching up the progress in the sewerage system construction.