Climate change has become a worldwide problem. Vietnam is rated fifth most affected country. Vietnam has to face up with prolonged droughts and floods, fiercer rains and storms, rising sea levels, saline water-logging in the Red River Delta and the Mekong Delta, and serious human and asset loss in coastal lowland.
The Mekong River plays an important role in the development of the entire China - India region, including Southwest China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. However, when the Mekong River is positively generating alluvial soil and forming civilisations, it also causes climate change and natural disasters devastating human lives, assets and burying many civilisations
Natural disaster and human disaster
Stepping into the 21st century, mankind has faced many ecological threats, with the worst concern being the global warming which will give rise to deluges, making many areas on the planet under the water. According to the least pessimistic forecast in 1990 by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the sea level will rise at least 15 cm, more than 50 cm on average, and at most 95 cm by 2100. However, according to the data released by American National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and the American Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), at the end of this century, the sea level rises at least 56 cm and at most 245 cm. Given the IPCC data are correct, at the end of this century, 2 - 2.5 million hectares of land in the Mekong Delta and from 1 - 1.5 million hectares in the Red River Delta will be under the sea!
The downstream of the Mekong River is the Mekong Delta is given the highest alarm for damaged caused by natural disasters and human disaster in Southeast Asia. Water flowing into the Mekong Delta is now longer a “floating season” but fierce flooding. Besides, prolonged droughts and salinity directly impact the lives of 20 million people in the biggest rice granary in Vietnam.
Architectural planning strategy and solution
The Mekong Delta is not only a specially diversified ecological zone but also a place that guarantees the national food security. Without effective environmental protection strategies and solutions, flooding and pollution are exacerbating in proportion with the process of urbanisation and industrialisation.
Through experience in planning similar flooding reason in the world with similar characteristics to the Mekong Delta, the following strategies need to be applied in orienting sustainable planning for the flooded Mekong Delta.
Applying advanced technologies in multi-disciplinary planning management
It had to be admitted that the budget for researching the reality and forecasting was very limited, leading to inaccurate and unscientific proposals for planning and development. Today, expenses for software and data input into the information system are not as high as earlier. Most cities in developed countries are using advanced technologies (such as GIS, WaterRideand GeoWeb) in many areas, especially architectural planning management. Many places even allow free access to information systems from the Internet.
These advanced technologies enable departments and agencies to share information about current and future projects in many different sectors. Thus, these management entities can work together in a very effective manner.
For example, information about flooding water will be provided in time to meet sustainable planning. Thanks to this information, responsible agencies can estimate the worst situations to put forth solutions and responses.
Prioritising economic development basing on pollution-free agriculture, fishery, tourism and light industry
Currently, many provinces and cities in the Mekong Delta are encouraging industrialisation. Authorities should be early warned of bad impacts of this trend to make right decisions involving in this issue.
Frequently flooded areas will be encouraged to promote their local strengths in agriculture, fisheries and pollution-free economic sectors because the risk of pollution will spread at an uncontrollable level when the flood hits. Besides, rebuilding expenditures will be greater than benefits that industrialisation process has generated to the land.
Ensuring that arterial land and waterway transportation systems can operate in all situations
To prepare for a well-planned sustainable development strategy, the Mekong Delta should urgently develop a lifeline system that can operate in all circumstances in both flooding and dry seasons.
Backbone traffic systems must include:
- North - South Route: Linking the centres of Mekong Delta provinces and cities with important northern cities and provinces, serving the national transport connectivity in the whole region.
- East-West: Linking with Trans-Asia Road and sea connections, serving the demand for international transport connectivity in the whole region.
- Traffic routes interconnecting the centres of Mekong Delta provinces and cities, helping evacuate the population and provide mutual assistance quickly and efficiently.
In 2008, the Institute of Urban and Rural Design and Planning proposed arterial traffic networks. However, they are still based on then status and available land funds. Thus, it is necessary to conduct new researches with updated scientific information on future floods to ensure that these routes can operate in any situation. Then, residents can quickly move to safe areas when they are hit by flood. For instance, in the United States, such traffic systems helped evacuate and support victims when New Orleans was attacked by natural disasters and flooding following Katrina Hurricane in 2004.
Building flood-free zones
A current distressing issue is the status of serious life and asset losses although flooding is very frequent in the Mekong Delta. In fact, it is highly likely to use scientific methods to make relatively accurate forecast of this matter. Therefore, in addition to continuing finding effective measures to deal with flooding or living with it, flood-prone localities should build their own networks of flood-free centres.
These centres will be located on high ground and can include the following functions:
- Economic, social and administrative centres
- Backbone traffic routes
-Development nucleuses in the floodplain, with one or more functions (such as hospital, school, daily service, operating centre and temporary flood shelters, local authorities) to ensure that the daily life of flood-hit people is not affected so much.
-Sources of industrial and civil pollution are isolated to ensure that there will be no risk of flood-causing pollution spreading even in the worst case.
-Distance between centres should be adjusted to provide best evacuation and aid for victims
- In case of being fully flooded, flood-free centres will not be able to be established but we can set up “living with flood centres”
Today, applying advanced technologies to multi-disciplinary architectural planning management in Mekong Delta provinces and cities is a practicable and very urgent. Besides, we can easily acquire assistances from international organisations and experts from countries with experience in coping with natural disasters such as floods.
For example, Vietnam has joined the World Deltas Association set up September 2010 in Rotterdam. And, in 2010, the governments of Vietnam and the Netherlands signed an agreement for strategic cooperation in adaptation to climate change and water resource management.
On March 31, 2011 at the fourth Vietnam-Netherlands Mekong Delta Planning Conference held in Ho Chi Minh City, the cooperation programme announced initial results on Mekong Delta construction planning, which covers climate change, water resources, space planning, and resource management institution.
We hope that specialists, including Vietnamese and international architects and planners, will combine global modern knowledge with traditional experience to build practical living with flood centres for residents in the Mekong Delta.
Architecture - Planner Nguyen Huu Thai
(Vietnam Association of Architects)
Vietnamese
