A group of students in Hanoi are cleaning up the city by replacing rubbish dumps with flowers and plants.

There are various locations in Hanoi where rubbish has been dumped. Those sites make the city look messy and unsightly while bothering travellers because of their smell and unhygienic problem. However, for the past several days, locals living on Pho Duc Chinh Street have been surprised to the rubbish had gone and in the place is flowers and plants.

The students said they wanted to create more green spaces for the city while raising people's awareness about environmental protection. They used old tyres and other recycled materials as plant and flower pots and decorations to brighten up the places.

Dam Thanh Tung, a student at the Academy of Journalism and Communication and head of the group, said they had the idea after participating in a TV show about environmental protection.

In the show, the group transformed a dumping area in Tran Binh Alley 58. For more than a decade, local authorities have tried various measures to make people stop throwing rubbish on the street. But the garbage always returned after a short time. The students had used bio bricks and other recycled materials from the surrounding to upgrade the area in five days.

After contemplating on the meaning of such action, Tung discussed with the group to extend the project to other areas in the city. The fund is contributed by the members or donations from sponsors.

"We choose streets that are being polluted, a former rubbish tip or locations that are often used as public toilets. We want to revive those places and create a green space for the people. In long term, we hope our action will make people be more aware about environmental protection," Tung said.

Mai Chi, a local on Pho Duc Chinh Street, said many people use the street as a public toilet and the smell was unbearable. The locals filed many complaints and hung up warning signs to no avail. But the situation has improved after the street was made prettier with flowers and plants.

"Everyone is much happier. This now becomes a resting place for people who exercise in the morning," she said.

Tung said they would keep transforming polluted sites into small gardens. "We are making plan to extend the project to the suburbs too," he said.

Dumping area in Tran Binh 58 Alleyway

Tran Binh Alley 58 after the transformation

Many people complained about the smell on Pho Duc Chinh Street

Flowers and plants put up to keep the street clean

Old tyres used as decoration