Drought, Salinization Cause $284M Damage for Vietnam

The ongoing severe drought and salinization have caused damage of VND6.4 trillion ($284.44 million) for Vietnam so far, state media reported. Along with causing serious damage for hundreds of thousands of hectares of crops in the Mekong Delta, the central region and the Central Highlands, the famine has also affected livelihood of 364,000 households due to water shortage. State agencies said the drought and salinization continue in the three regions. As many as 226 water reservoirs in the Central Highlands and the central region have been dried and provide no water for local agriculture. Experts forecast that the famine will continue until June and cause additional damage for other 54,000 ha of agriculture in the affected areas. Foreign environmentalists have blamed Chinese and Lao hydropower projects in the upper stream of the Mekong River for severe drought and salinization. China and Laos have built dozens of giant hydropower dams in the upper Mekong River. (Ha Noi Moi – New Hanoi Apr 20)