Provinces in the Mekong Delta are strengthening measures to mitigate salt water intrusion as the region faces severe drought this dry season, according to local officials.
Many residents in the region are already struggling with a lack of fresh water for daily use and for irrigation purposes.
Saline water with a salt content of 0.4 percent and above, which can damage crops, has entered 30km inland in Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Tra Vinh, Soc Trang, Ca Mau, Kien Giang and Hau Giang provinces, according to the Southern Institute of Water Resources Research.
The drought had caused deeper encroachment by salt water via river mouths as water levels in the Delta's rivers fell rapidly, said the institute.
Nguyen Thien Phap, head of Tien Giang's Sub-department of Irrigation, said salt water had encroached 30-35km inland in the province, threatening 6,000ha of winter-spring rice crop in Go Cong District.
The province has closed it Vam Giong sluice gates early in order to protect the crop.
In Ca Mau province, the provincial People's Committee is mobilising local residents to build more than 40 dykes to protect crops.
Nguyen Van Khang, deputy chairman of the Tien Giang People's Committee and director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said his department was looking at ways to restructure crop cultivation schedule to avoid damage caused by salt water.
Meanwhile, agriculture officials in Ben Tre province have instructed farmers in coastal districts not to use river water to irrigate their crops during high tide because of the high salinity.
Salt water can encroach on more than 60km inland in Ben Tre province during peak drought periods in April and May, the provincial Hydro-Meteorological Bureau has warned.
In fact, salt water intrusion will worsen all over the delta during peak drought times, according to the Central Hydro-Meteorological Bureau.
Phan Van Khong, director of the Ben Tre Agriculture and Aquaculture Extension Centre, said in addition damaging crops, salt water intrusion also had its good side as it was beneficial to shrimp and oyster breeding as well as salt production.
There was a need to strictly monitor the situation of salt water intrusion and carefully research measures to prevent its impacts and exploit its benefits, Khong said.
It is necessary for the Delta provinces to redesign cultivation schedules of crops and aquaculture for suitable with the annual intrusion of salt water to mitigate its damage and exploit its benefits, according to experts.
Dam Hoa Binh, deputy head of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development's Irrigation Department, said his department would next week inspect the situation of salt water intrusion in every Delta province in order to come up with measures for reduce its impacts.
The ministry's Cultivation Department has also warned Delta's provinces to close sluice gates to prevent further salt water intrusion, and to preserve fresh water in reservoirs and canals for farming. Salt water intrusion will affect about 800,000ha of rice in the Delta in March when the plants need a lot of water./.
Many residents in the region are already struggling with a lack of fresh water for daily use and for irrigation purposes.
Saline water with a salt content of 0.4 percent and above, which can damage crops, has entered 30km inland in Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Tra Vinh, Soc Trang, Ca Mau, Kien Giang and Hau Giang provinces, according to the Southern Institute of Water Resources Research.
The drought had caused deeper encroachment by salt water via river mouths as water levels in the Delta's rivers fell rapidly, said the institute.
Nguyen Thien Phap, head of Tien Giang's Sub-department of Irrigation, said salt water had encroached 30-35km inland in the province, threatening 6,000ha of winter-spring rice crop in Go Cong District.
The province has closed it Vam Giong sluice gates early in order to protect the crop.
In Ca Mau province, the provincial People's Committee is mobilising local residents to build more than 40 dykes to protect crops.
Nguyen Van Khang, deputy chairman of the Tien Giang People's Committee and director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said his department was looking at ways to restructure crop cultivation schedule to avoid damage caused by salt water.
Meanwhile, agriculture officials in Ben Tre province have instructed farmers in coastal districts not to use river water to irrigate their crops during high tide because of the high salinity.
Salt water can encroach on more than 60km inland in Ben Tre province during peak drought periods in April and May, the provincial Hydro-Meteorological Bureau has warned.
In fact, salt water intrusion will worsen all over the delta during peak drought times, according to the Central Hydro-Meteorological Bureau.
Phan Van Khong, director of the Ben Tre Agriculture and Aquaculture Extension Centre, said in addition damaging crops, salt water intrusion also had its good side as it was beneficial to shrimp and oyster breeding as well as salt production.
There was a need to strictly monitor the situation of salt water intrusion and carefully research measures to prevent its impacts and exploit its benefits, Khong said.
It is necessary for the Delta provinces to redesign cultivation schedules of crops and aquaculture for suitable with the annual intrusion of salt water to mitigate its damage and exploit its benefits, according to experts.
Dam Hoa Binh, deputy head of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development's Irrigation Department, said his department would next week inspect the situation of salt water intrusion in every Delta province in order to come up with measures for reduce its impacts.
The ministry's Cultivation Department has also warned Delta's provinces to close sluice gates to prevent further salt water intrusion, and to preserve fresh water in reservoirs and canals for farming. Salt water intrusion will affect about 800,000ha of rice in the Delta in March when the plants need a lot of water./.
