More than 377,000 people in the Mekong Delta face a fresh-water shortage because of saline water intrusion in the area as a result of a long and severe drought, according to the National Centre for Rural Clean Water Supply and Environmental Sanitation.

The price for fresh clean water has soared. In Kien Giang, Ben Tre and Ca Mau provinces, people have been buying clean water for 25,000-60,000 VND (1.2-2.9 USD) a cubic metre, far higher than the normal price of 7,000-10,000 VND.

Vo Thi Thong, 47, from Hon Dat district's Binh Son commune in Kien Giang, said the bore wells of hundreds of households had been affected by saline water intrusion and acidic soil.

To have potable water, locals have to travel about 10km to the commune's centre to buy clean water, she said.

Saline water intrusion and drought in the delta have affected agricultural production, with salt water concentration increasing to 0.9 percent in several areas in Hau Giang province, Nguyen Van Dong, director of the province's Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said.

In Ben Tre, Tra Vinh, Ca Mau and Bac Lieu provinces, the water is more saline than last year, officials said.

In Ca Mau province, the salt concentration reached 3 percent. Rice will die when the salt concentration in fields becomes higher than this level.

About 100,000ha of farmland in the delta have been affected by saline water intrusion, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

This intrusion occurred one month earlier than in the past, and entered 40-50 km deep into river mouths.

In some areas in Soc Trang, Tra Vinh, Ben Tre, Tien Giang and Long An provinces, saline water has intruded 50-60km into rivers.

Since early February, strong winds combined with drought have created favourable conditions for deeper saline water intrusion.

Steps have been taken to provide fresh water to farms.

Hau Giang and Vinh Long provinces have dredged and upgraded dozens of canals to supply irrigation water for 38,000ha of rice and fruit in affected areas.

Tien Giang province has built 173 temporary dams to prevent saline water intrusion and set up 173 sites to pump water into fields.

And Kien Giang province has closed sluice gates along sea at Rach Gia - Ba Hon areas to keep fresh water.

Nguyen Huynh Trung, deputy head of the Kien Giang Irrigation Sub-department, said the water levels of rivers would decline as there would be little rain during the dry season.

"Saline water intrusion will likely continue to enter deeper inland with a higher concentration of salt," he said.

Central region warned of drought

However, the situation will not be as severe as last year and is hoped to improve in late August, the centre’s experts said.

They also warned of lower water levels in most regional rivers, resulted in the deep intrusion of sea water, while t he rainy season is expected to come late this year.

The region already suffered from water shortage in the first four months of this year, with rainfall levels dropping 50-90 percent this year compared to the first three months of last year. The situation was especially serious in the southern central provinces of Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan and Central Highlands localities, where many areas saw no rain at all.

Meanwhile, water levels in reservoirs have reached only 60-70 percent of their designed capacity.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has asked affected localities to preserve water in reservoirs and dredge rivers, canals and wells to mitigate the impact of drought and saline intrusion.

The ministry has also asked the Prime Minister to order agencies to help the localities affected by drought and saline intrusion. 

Source: VNA