The worsening erosion at Hoi An City’s Cua Dai Beach took central stage at the 5th Vietnam-Japan workshop on estuaries, coasts and rivers held on Monday and Tuesday in the historic town.

The workshop participants take a field trip to study the Cua Dai beach.

The gathering attracted 150 scientists and managers, including 30 specialists from universities in Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia and the Republic of Korea, local media reported.

In recent years, many kilometres of the Cua Dai Beach have suffered from severe erosion due to rising sea levels and a shortage of muddy sand flowing from the upstream Thu Bon River, affecting the livelihood of local residents as well other socio-economic activities in the area.

Previous reports by Viet Nam News showed that the shortage of muddy sand was caused by construction of hydropower plants and sand over-exploitation on the Thu Bồn River.

The event focussed on solutions, ideas and experiences in applying science and technology in water works related to estuaries, coasts and rivers, especially as climate change is exerting serious impacts on many localities across Viet Nam.

In the short-term, the provincial People’s Committee agreed with the proposed scheme of artificial beach nourishment to save the beach from erosion provided that future projects ensure sustainability, and closely follow set planning.

Besides in-house discussions, participants carried out field trips to survey and record the situation at Cua Dai Beach.

According to the Water Resources Directorate, erosion at estuaries and coasts in the central region is proceding at an alarming rate and is increasingly worrying.

In the last two years, 164 erosion spots measuring 170km were found along the 900km coastline from Quang Tri to Phu Yen provinces, Vietnam Television (VTV) reported on Monday.

The Cua Dai Beach area in Hoi An City witnesses sea encroachment of 50-200m annually. Erosion is likely to occur at nearby beaches, such as Hà My Beach in Dien Ban Town and Da Nang City’s beaches.

The two-day workshop is jointly held by Quang Nam Province’s  People’s Committee, Central Region College of Technology–Economics and Water Resources, Water Resources University, and Ho Chí Minh City University of Technology in conjunction with Japan’s Tohoku University.

Over the past 20 years, the international workshops on "estuaries, coasts and rivers” have been held in numerous countries including Japan, India, Indonesia, Thailand and Viet Nam. 

VNS