The Tay Ho District People's Committee has drawn up a plan to clean up West Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Hanoi and one of the most famous tourist attractions and iconic places in the Vietnamese capital, according to District Chairman Nguyen Dinh Khuyen.

Khuyen said local authorities are preparing draft regulations for the management and operation of the West Lake to be submitted to the city government after all old and dilapidated boats and structures are removed from the lake.

He added that the Tay Ho District's administration is weighing measures to clean up the lake, including dredging its bed, increasing aeration, and growing aquatic plants. More electric lighting and decorative lights will be installed on roads along the lakeshore, and walkways and flower gardens around the lake will be renovated.

The West Lake located northwest of Hanoi's center. Photo: Chien Cong/The Hanoi Times

Khuyen stressed that West Lake has long been a famous landscape, one of the cultural and spiritual symbols of the capital. "In the past, the district authorities have dismantled and relocated 146 out of 147 floating restaurants from the lake," he said.

To preserve and promote the potential values and advantages of West Lake and contribute to building the district into a service-tourism-cultural center of Hanoi, the city's authorities have delegated the management of the lake to Tay Ho District.

"The West Lake project has gone through three rounds of consultation with relevant departments. We are collecting feedback from public comments and the city's Fatherland Front Committee before submitting it to the Hanoi People's Committee. The project aims to manage and utilize the full potential and advantages to preserve and promote the cultural values of the West Lake in the coming period," Khuyen stressed.

West Lake is located northwest of central Hanoi. With a shoreline of 17 km and an area of more than 500 hectares, the lake is famous for its serene and tranquil beauty, the density of historical relics, pagodas, surrounding gardens, hotels, restaurants, and cafes.

The area around West Lake is one of the city's most vibrant centers for international cuisine and is home to a sizeable expatriate community. The Hanoi government also plans to introduce more tourism activities at the lake, such as concerts, hot air balloon rides, paragliding, and a golf course.