Land erosion in the province is threatening lives.
Recently, the director of Ca Mau Province People's Committee, Nguyen Tien Hai, signed a request to the central committee requesting urgent funding of US$41 million. The money will be used to deal with the dangerous erosion occurring at eight locations in the province, Thanh Nien reports.
The locations that are in special danger are all located in Nam Can, Ngoc Hien and Dam Doi districts. On average, 20 meters of land washes away every month in these places. In the worst cases, 50 meters of land is lost per month due to erosion. Ca Mau is Vietnam's southernmost province, part of the Mekong Delta.
There are currently 27 spots in Ca Mau Province, stretching across 38 kilometers, that are coping with the same problem. In August, 80 households living along the coast in U Minh and Tran Van Thoi districts had to be relocated.
In the last seven years, Ca Mau Province has lost 9,000 hectares of forest due to land erosion. Approximately 38,000 houses along the coastline and near estuaries are threatened with destruction. The province has already spent approximately US$43 million from different funding sources to repair 28 kilometers of land.
Land erosion is becoming more and more serious for several provinces in the Mekong Delta. This month, Soc Trang and Bac Lieu province both declared the urgency of erosion in several areas, according to Tuoi Tre.
[Photo via Cong Luan]
