Meliorators of the Vitebsk region cleared almost 170 hydraulic structures of snow

March 15, Vitebsk / Sergey Kochetov - BELTA /. In preparation for the spring flood, land reclamation enterprises of the Vitebsk region have cleared snow from almost 170 hydraulic structures, more than 50 of which are located on ponds and reservoirs. This was reported to a BELTA correspondent by Anatoly Bozhko, First Deputy General Director of Vitebskmeliorvodkhoz. An emergency supply of materials has been created at potentially hazardous hydraulic structures, including over 4.5 thousand cubic meters of sand-gravel mixture and crushed stone, about 2 thousand bags, as well as over 750 units of tools. Ice breaking, snow removal, etc. are ongoing at water discharge structures that pose a risk in terms of floodwater passage. An operational group has been created and responsible managers of Vitebskmeliorvodkhoz have been assigned to districts to coordinate the preparation for flood passage and take prompt measures during the flood period. In addition, duty shifts will be established at the enterprise during the flood period. Emergency crews equipped with the necessary equipment and materials have been formed at land reclamation enterprises in the districts. Training has been conducted with managers on preparing land reclamation systems, hydraulic structures, ponds, and reservoirs for accident-free spring flood passage. In 2009, the region's land reclaimers repaired 428 km of open land reclamation networks, carried out current cleaning of canals from siltation over 856 km, repaired 290 culvert and water-retaining structures, as well as 97 km of dams and roads. In total, agricultural organizations in the region have 96 ponds and reservoirs built as part of land reclamation projects, as well as over 13 thousand culvert and water-retaining structures on the open land reclamation network, 626 bridges, and over 12 thousand culverts. -0-