The Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta province of Tra Vinh has taken a number of measures to prevent droughts, water shortages, and saltwater intrusion in the upcoming dry season to minimise possible damage caused by them.
The Vietnam News Agency’s electronic newspaper VietnamPlus presented water tanks to 64 poor households in Pho Cao commune, Dong Van district, the northern mountainous province of Ha Giang on November 7.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has decided to provide seeds from the national reserve to the northern mountainous province of Ha Giang and the south-central province of Ninh Thuan, to support people hit by natural disasters and drought this summer and autumn.
The Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang has developed a plan to respond to drought, water shortage, and saline intrusion in the dry season in late-2020 and early-2021, a conference held by the provincial People’s Committee on October 5 heard.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) and the People’s Committee of the central province of Nghe An jointly held a conference on July 22 on strengthening the measures responding to drought, saline water and natural disasters in the north-central region.
The Hydro-Informatics Institute (HII) under the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation of Thailand, which analyses water-related data, is warning of a water shortage as it expects this year's rainy season to be shorter than usual.
The south-central region is estimated to have 51,000 – 70,000ha of farmlands facing a water shortage and a temporary halt to cultivation until there is rain or farmers switch to drought-resistant crops, according to the General Department of Irrigation under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has asked authorities in the central and Central Highlands regions to take action to deal with the prolonged heat wave, drought and saltwater intrusion.
The Mekong Delta province of Long An, which has been hit by severe drought this year, needs more fresh water, but can only supply about 50 percent of demand from its 35 fresh water treatment plants and stations.
After harvesting the Winter-Spring crop, local farmers on the downstream Vu Gia river in Quang Nam province have already prepared for the Summer-Autumn crop. Due to a shortage of water, farmers in the locality have switched to shorter period plant varieties or rotated to other crops.
The Kenh Lap Reservoir in Ben Tre province, the largest in the Mekong Delta, is drying up due to drought and saltwater intrusion, leaving thousands of households facing a water shortage.
The Mekong Delta province of Ca Mau plans to build more water supply systems, set up water pipes, drill bore wells, and provide water containers for households affected by drought and saline intrusion, according to its Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Authorities have instructed farmers in the Mekong Delta to sow the summer-autumn rice crop on established schedules to mitigate the damage of drought, saltwater intrusion and disease.
The Mekong Delta province of Tien Giang has earmarked over 175.8 billion VND (7.54 million USD) to build clean water supply works in the coastal area in the dry season 2020.
Thousands of hectares of farmland in the central region are likely to face severe water shortages for the summer-autumn rice crop, according to the Directorate of Water Resources under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has allocated 800 million VND (nearly 34,000 USD) to five provinces which have declared an emergency due to saltwater intrusion.
Farmers in the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang have adopted many new farming models to adapt to climate change, which has helped them cope with the severe saltwater intrusion.
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