VietNamNet Bridge – Drought in the Tay Nguyen (Central Highlands) region has seriously affected farming and the lives of local residents in the region.

Tan Dien Lake's water is exhausted in Kon Tum Central Highland Province. Drought in the Tay Nguyen (Central Highlands) region has seriously affected farming and the lives of local residents in the region.— Photo vietnam.vnanet.vn

About 180,000ha of rice, crops and other trees in the provinces of Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Kon Tum, Lam Dong and Gia Lai have faced a shortage of water since the middle of this month, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).

Tran Trung Thanh, deputy director of the Tay Nguyen Centre for Hydrometeorology Forecasting, said the ongoing El Nino phenomenon was the most extreme of the last 60 years and it would cause a record drought in the Highlands.

“The peak of the drought will occur in early April,” he said.

The region’s rainfall between December 2015 and February 2016 has fallen by 40 per cent against the same period last year, according to the Tay Nguyen Centre for Hydrometeorology Forecasting.

The water levels of most reservoirs in the region have fallen by 15-35 per cent compared to the average of many years.

More than 35 rivers and springs and 40 per cent of small reservoirs have dried up.

The region has also faced a shortage of daily use water, with Dak Lak being the hardest-hit province as it has about 25,000 affected households.

People in Dak Lak have drilled wells and built dams to take water.

Pham Quang Muoi, head of the Cu M’s gar District Agriculture and Rural Development Bureau in Dak Lak, said the district had spent VND500 million (US$22,000) to drill five wells to supply daily water for local people.

Drip irrigation

Several farmers in Dak Lak have invested in drip irrigation to water coffee trees.

Y Cal, who has used the method for his orchard in Dak Lak’s Krong Pak District, said: “This has saved more than one-third of irrigation water. It does not cause erosion and it makes the fertiliser more effective.”

MARD has instructed the Dak Lak Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to work with departments and agencies to set up irrigation models.

It has also asked credit organisations to provide soft loans for those who invest in irrigation models.

In Gia Lai Province, more than 11,300ha of rice, pepper, coffee and other trees have been affected by drought.

Nguyen Thi Dung in Gia Lai’s Mang Yang District said her more than 500 coffee trees and 3,000sq.m of rice had been abandoned because of a lack of water.

“The spring has dried up so I cannot plant crops,” she said.

Pham Ngoc Co, head of the Mang Yang District Agriculture Bureau, said many farmers had sold their buffalos, cows and goats because they feared their animals would die.   

More than 2,000 households in Gia Lai’s Kong Pa and Chu Se districts face a severe shortage of daily use water.

The districts’ local authorities have bought tanks to transport water to local people.

As of March 10, drought had caused damages of about VND100 billion ($4.5 million) in Gia Lai Province, according to the provincial People’s Committee.

Gia Lai and Kon Tum have petitioned the Government to provide financial support to recover agricultural production.

Lam Dong Province has encouraged people in drought-prone areas, mostly in Dạ Teh, Dạ Huoai and Cat Tien districts, to dig ponds and small reservoirs to store water.

K’ Dinh, a Chau Mạ ethnic in Dạ Huoai’s Phuoc Loc Commune, and four other neighbouring households have dug a pond to provide water.

The Dạ Huoai People’s Committee plans to dig 27 ponds and small reservoirs but local people have registered to dig a total of 39.

The ponds and small reservoirs have an area of 500 -2,000 sq.m each. A 500sq.m pond can provide irrigation water for 4-5 ha of plants.

Lam Dong Province will pay 30 per cent of the cost of digging ponds and small reservoirs.

Trinh Xuan Thuy, deputy chairman of the Dạ Huoai People’s Committee, said: “Digging ponds and small reservoirs has been effective.”

Currently, only 30 per cent of the region’s farming areas have been provided water from irrigation works, according to MARD.

The region has a mountainous terrain, so it is difficult for the region to keep rain water and underground water, said experts.

Central Highlands provinces have told farmers to use irrigation water thriftily and switch to drought -resistant crops in areas far from rivers and springs.

The Tay Nguyen Region Steering Committee has asked provinces to give priority to daily use water for people, especially ethnic minorities.

The provinces have also petitioned the MARD to speed up major irrigation projects to prevent and control drought over the long term.

Forest fire threats

Many forests in Tay Nguyen provinces are also at risk of fire, and are at the fourth and fifth warning levels, according to the Tay Nguyen provinces’ sub-departments of forest protection.       

Nguyen Huu Hai, deputy chairman of Kon Tum Province People’s Committee, said more than 100,000ha of the province’s 540,000ha of forest were at high risk of fires.

Kon Tum had prepared 5,000 people who would be available to fight fires, he said.

The Tay Nguyen Region Steering Committee told provinces to strictly implement measures to protect forests and prevent fires, especially in forested areas at the fourth and fifth warning level.

The ongoing drought is expected to last until June, according to MARD.

Islanders are suffering fresh water shortage

Seven hundred households in Nam Du Archipelago of Kien Hai District in southern Kien Giang Province are facing serious shortage of fresh water, reported online newspaper Vietnamplus.

A public well in Hon Mau (Mau Isle) is drying up. A local resident is taking the last drops. — VNA/VNS Photo by Le Huy Hai

The islanders are suffering at a peak time of the dry season which causes severe shortage of fresh water affecting people’s lives and production.

Unlike previous years, when the dry season lasted from February to April, this year’s dry season was forecast to last until June. So, the shortage of fresh water was predicted to be more serious, the newspaper said.

Tran Van Du, vice head of Nam Du Commune said that in the early days of the dry season, the residents of Nam Du bought water from the neighbouring commune of An Sơn at VND70,000 to VND100,000 (US$3.5 to $5) per cubic metres (cu.m).

But when the dry season peaked, neighbouring communes also suffered water shortage, so the locals of Nam Du Commune had to pay VND200,000 (nearly $10) per cu.m for fresh water brought to them from the mainland. The price was expected to rise.

The six public wells in the commune have been drying up since last month. Some households have spent millions of dong on digging their own wells, but they have failed to find any fresh water sources. Most of the water sources here were known to be extremely saline, Du said.

At present, thousands of locals were saving every drop of water for their daily use.

Nguyen Thien Hai, a local resident, said, “We residents consider water more precious than gold.”

“Even if you have a lot of money, you cannot buy fresh water whenever you want to. You just have to wait for the water to be shipped from the mainland once a week. Sometimes, the locals have to scramble for water along with the others,” Hai said.

“At the moment, most households in Hon Ngang (Ngang Isle) and Hon Mau (Mau Isle) wash their clothes every 5 to 7 days. They have made use of every drop of fresh water,” he added.

Many other families have to use fresh water leaking from the mountains or wash clothes with seawater.

Due to the lack of fresh water, many people used unsafe water which would cause various diseases.

This was a cause for concern for the local authority and people.

To help the islanders overcome the dry season, the commune has called for funds from charitable organisations to each household for 4 to 5 plastic containers to preserve rainwater.

However, even the water was just enough during the early months of the dry season.

Du said the Nam Du Commune was established in 2005 but the projects to supply fresh water to the commune were still only on the paper.

Recently, an investor conducted an investigation to build a system of fresh water tanks and pipes to every household in Ngang Isle, Du said.

The project, which is expected to be completed next year, will help people survive in the dry season, he said.

Nam Du archipelago consists of 21 islands and isles belonging to 2 communes of Nam Du and An Son with a total area of more than 1,000 hectares. The archipelago’s 14,000 people are living on 11 islands. But most of them live on Hon Lon (Lon Isle) of An Son Commune, and Hon Ngang (Ngang Isle) and Hon Mau (Mau Isle) of Nam Du Commune.

Nam Du Archipelago, now, is an ideal tourism destination. Since February, more than 15,000 tourists have visited the island.   

The severe shortage of fresh water would be a hurdle when it comes attracting tourists, Du said.

VNS