As the rainy season reaches its peak in Vietnam, a stream in northern Quang Ninh Province has become a destination for people to earn hard money out of the blackened water.

The constant noise of diesel engines along an unnamed three-kilometer stream in Quang Ninh’s Cam Pha City is a common sound these days.

The stream stands out from other waterways in the area because of its blackish, oily water – the product of coal residue washed downstream from open coal mines in higher areas by heavy rains.

Also, in the dirty water are dozens of men and women carrying with them long tubes connected to the diesel engines, which they use to suck pea-sized pieces of coal from the stream bed.

For these people, there are only two seasons per year: the rainy – full season, and the dry – hungry season.

“Collecting washed-away coal is the lowest-paid job in the coal industry,” said Bui Duc Thuan, a collector from Thanh Hoa Province. “But it’s still better-paid than working on the paddy field back home, and it provides for my two children.”

Along the length of the stream, dozens of people with similar backgrounds, some as young as 15 years old, can be seen dipping themselves in the water for hours on end without safety equipment.

Skin conditions caused by prolonged exposure to unclean water are common ailments among these types of laborers.

Coal pieces are collected and filtered to be sold for profit. Photo: Tuoi Tre

According to Phu, who has worked in the coal-collecting business for over ten years, an average collector can make VND5-7 million (US$220-300) a month from the laborious job.

“There are around a dozen collectors in my neighborhood, half of whom have returned to their hometown due to a lack of rain recently,” Phu said. “If it pours again, I will give them a call. I’ll be leaving, too, when there’s no coal left to collect.”

Trinh Thi Hoa, one of the few female collectors in the stream, said her husband and children all work in the same business.

“Before 2015, coal was washed downstream in lumps as big as a bowl every time it rained,” Thoa recalled. “We could make up to VND1 million [$45] a day back then.”

Hoa said the job was by no means a comfortable one, as the coal water can make the skin “itch so much you just want to scratch till it bleeds.”

“People stay inside when the storm comes, but for us collectors, the storm is when we pack our stuff and get outside to make money,” Thoa said.

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