Monday, May 7, 2012

Mekong Delta faces dire climate impacts


VietnamNet: The Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta needs to take prompt and drastic measures to deal with the steadily worsening problem of landslides and erosion, experts warn.
The problem gains added urgency as the region is highly susceptible to climate change impacts, including rising sea levels, in the coming years, they say. They also say that one of the solutions that cannot be postponed is the building and strengthening of embankments and sea dykes in the most vulnerable localities.
The departments of natural resources and environment in several Mekong Delta provinces have reported that landslides and land erosion, mostly along the Tien (Front) and Hau (Rear) rivers, have caused increasing damage in recent years.
The provinces of An Giang, Dong Thap and Ca Mau are among the hardest hit. In An Giang Province, many areas along Tien and Hau rivers are suffering from serious landslide and erosion. The situation is the same in Dong Thap Province where the length of the affected area is estimated at about 200km. About 2,500 households have to be evacuated, according to local authorities....
The Mekong River in Vietnam's Dong Thap province, shot by Quoilp, Wikimedia Commons, under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license

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