Environment

Experts have urged the Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta provinces to rezone irrigation systems and dredge canals to cope with the damaging effects of climate change.

Deputy PM Trinh Dinh Dung on Sunday had a fact-finding tour to Ky Ha Commune, Ky Anh Town of the central province of Ha Tinh following mysterious mass fish deaths along the central coast.

Customs officers at Noi Bai International Airport and anti-smuggling forces on April 22 examined two packages and seized 105 pieces of elephant ivory, weighing nearly 100 kilogrammes.

Tourism officials in the central province of Quang Binh have expressed worry over the mass deaths of fish which are badly affecting the local tourism industry.

Thousands of fish along the coast in three central provinces have died en mass and the finger of blame is being pointed at the Vung Ang Industrial Zone.

One of the government's most senior lawyers PS Narasimha told the Supreme Court that a quarter of the country's population, spread across 10 states, have been hit by drought after two consecutive years of weak monsoons.

Scientists and environmentalists across the country have raised their voice to strongly oppose the construction of the Đrang Phôk Hydropower Plant at the end of this year in the Central Highlands Đắk Lắk Province’s Krông Na Commune.

Experts have proposed using the Nhiêu Lộc – Thị Nghè Canal as a reservoir to regulate water as urban floods have become more serious during the rainy season in HCM City.

The Hanoi Drainage Project for Environmental Improvement which was started more than a decade ago is still under progress while the capital's inadequate sewers are still unable to cope with heavy flooding.

Communication work plays the leading role in climate change response as public awareness of this issue still remains inappropriate, said Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

Four drought-stricken provinces in the Central Highlands have received their first rain in six months.

Serious drought is greatly affecting life of hundreds of local households and their pepper farms on Phu Quoc Island.

Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee Dinh La Thang asked for US assistance in responding to climate change in Vietnam while receiving US Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius in the city.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has proposed to destroy seized illegally-trade elephant tusks and rhino horn at well-known destinations to raise awareness about animal protection.

Vietnam appreciates neighbouring countries’ efforts to coordinate in the sustainable use of the Mekong River’s water resources, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Le Hai Binh said.

The bodies of at least two elephants have been found by the lakes in Dak Lak Province with heat and drought, being suspected as the main suspect.

China will continue discharging water from a hydropower station into the downstream Mekong River for drought relief, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lu Kang said.

The Drang Phok Hydropower Plant project, which was started way back in 2007 and criticised for its impact on the ecosystem, has still not been scraped despite continued opposition.

Authorities in Ha Tinh Province are investigating a mass fish death in Ky Anh Town after local farmers raised fears it was caused by sewage discharge from the nearby Formosa Industrial Zone.