According to the assessment of the World Bank (WB), Vietnam is not a country that possesses strong potential water resources because more than 60 percent of surface water in Vietnam depends on other countries. Although the Vietnamese Government has made great efforts, approximately half of Vietnamese population does not have enough water to meet their needs. The consequences of climate change have also impacted water resources in Vietnam and increased currently serious challenges.
According to the water sector assessment of Vietnam, the total annual level of Vietnam’s surface water exceeds that of the world, but each season sees a different level of water. In a long dry season, the level of water accounts for only about 30 percent of the total level of water in the whole year. In this season, there is a water shortage in about half of the 16 major river basins. In fact, annually each Vietnamese person in average can get 9,650 cubic metres of water, while the world standard level is about 7,400 cubic metres of water apiece. However, in terms of inland water resources, the annual average level of Vietnam reaches 3,600 cubic metres per capita and stays below world standard level (4,000 cubic metres per capita). In accordance with inland water resources criteria, Vietnam is considered to be short of water resources because 63 percent of its total surface water resources are from outside. Specifically, in the Red River and Mekong basins, outside resources of water account for 50 and 90 percent of total surface water respectively, so those water resources are not able to be actively protected, exploited and used.
Water resources are not only degraded, but also seriously polluted because of many reasons. In Hanoi, the city has daily emitted about 300,000 to 400,000 cubic metres of untreated or preliminarily treated sewage directly to the drainage lines; the degree of pollutant concentrations is very high in some tabs. In Ho Chi Minh City, the level of industrial sewage alone discharged into the environment every day is 400,000 cubic metres. Some industrial sectors, such as chemicals, fertilizers, mining, which have high level of sewage, have discharged their waste directly to the rivers, lakes and canals, causing serious pollution downstream.
As a result of unsustainable exploitation and use, water resources of Vietnam become continuously degraded. Rivers in urban areas of the city are heavily polluted by industrial and domestic sewage. Hydroelectric dams have brought death to living rivers and destroyed the river environments downstream. Besides, global climate change has and is going to dramatically impact water resources. But more than 30 percent of people in communities do not know what to do to protect river environments.
According to scientists, population growth and economic development will increase water demand and influence water resources in the near future. Scarcity and shortage of water will become serious threats to human existence in the future, so that there must be solutions to manage and sustainably exploit water resources, such as: reducing degradation of water resources caused by global climate change; improving, upgrading and expanding drainage systems; the Government needs to issue complete and integrated guiding documents to implement the Law on Environmental Protection and other laws relating to inventory, planning schemes and assessment of water resources. Moreover, it is also very important to forecast water resources, natural disasters, floods and droughts seasonally and yearly, associated with the phenomenon of La Nina and El Nino, in order to set up plans for using water resources reasonably and safely.
However, the knowledge and behaviour of every citizen to rationally protect and exploit water resources is the most important thing. Vietnam must try harder to create the custom of river restoration among its people, all government grades, civil and social organisations.
Do Ngoc
Vietnamese
