Vietnam Urged to Build Comprehensive Strategy to Combat Coastal Erosion

Vietnam needs to build a comprehensive strategy to death with coastal erosion, which results from rising sea levels caused by climate change, according to experts. At a recent meeting in Hanoi, Le Van Cong, deputy head of the Vietnam Administration of Seas and Islands’ Oceanography Center said that the speed of coastal erosion has increased years by years. Between 15m-30m of coast is lost per year in Thanh Hoa and Tien Giang provinces and between 10m-20m in Ho Chi Minh City and Tra Vinh province. The stretches of coastline that have suffered the most from coastal erosion since 1990 are located in the seven provinces of Binh Thuan, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Phu Yen, Thanh Hoa and Thua Thien Hue. Head of the administration’s Seas and Islands Division Dang Xuan Dung noted that the erosion has posed a great threat to lives of hundreds of local residents and their homes. Mr. Cong added the higher frequency and intensity of typhoons, overexploitation of sand and reef as well as mangrove deforestation are blamed for the rising coastal erosion across the country. Statistics released by the National Center for Hydro-Meteorology Forecasting showed that a total 246 tropical storms made landfall in Vietnam from 1961 to 2010. While there were three storms in 1961, the number rose to 10 in 2008. Deputy Head of the administration Vu Si Tuan said that public awareness of disaster mitigation remained low and has worsened the situation. Overlapping and inconsistent policies in environmental protection have also made it difficult for authorized agencies to cope with the matter. Director of the Research Institute for the Management of Seas and Islands Vu Thanh Ca said that the booming of resorts along the coastline is also pushing coastal erosion to higher levels. Mr. Cong added that a pilot model to prevent coastal erosion will be implemented over a 102-km stretch of eroded coastline in the central province of Thanh Hoa, the hardest hit area, in 2014-2015, with an estimated cost of $150,000. The Coordinating Body on the Seas of East Asia (COBSEA) Consultant Reynaldo Molina urged the Vietnamese government to quickly build a policy system and an observation network to manage coastal erosion. In 2009, the COBSEA helped Vietnam and other regional countries develop the “COBSEA Regional Program for the Sustainable and Ecosystem-Based Management of Coastal Erosion in the East Asian Seas Region.” With a coastline of over 3,200km, Vietnam is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change. If sea level rises one meter, 5% of the country’s land, 11% of its population and 7% of its farmland would be affected with the losses estimated at 10% of GDP. (Vietnamplus.vn July 22, http://dangcongsan.vn July 18)