Environment

Forest and land fires in Southeast Asia kill an additional 15,000 people annually when the El Nino weather phenomenon grips the region, scientists have estimated.

River bank landslides have increased in the Mekong Delta, causing huge loss to property and agricultural production, besides greatly hampering the daily lives of people.

Vietnam's depleting forests have been struggling of late with yet another threat – the agriculture sector, experts said at a recent conference..

The Vietnam Register is preparing a plan to put motorbike exhaust under control in a move intended to ease pollution, said Trinh Ngoc Giao, head of the agency.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and the International Development Law Organisation held a seminar on building a legal framework for the management of climate change in Vietnam.

Threatened shark species are being used to make shark fin soup, a delicacy in Chinese cuisine, in several US cities, according to an unprecedented study based on DNA testing.

Vietnam needs to adopt more environmentally-friendly ways of managing and disposing of solid waste, which is forecast to continue increasing due to the country's continued rapid industrialisation and urbanisation.

South Korea's extended heatwave has taken its toll on both humans and animals, with more than 830,000 chickens or other poultry reported dead as of Wednesday.

The CITES Authority of Vietnam has rejected a World Wildlife Fund report that rates Vietnam as the worst performer in wild animal protection, saying it is not objective or thorough.

Garbage dumped along dykes protecting Ly Son Island is polluting the water, killing coral, prawns and sea vegetation.

Saola (Pseudoryx nghetinhensis) are considered the most typical representatives for the biodiversity in Vietnam. However, 3/5 of the total saola individuals have disappeared.

Industrial zones are destroying the environment, killing rivers and creating "cancer villages" in which many residents have become fatally ill, says an official.

Donna, believed to be the world's oldest hippo, has died at the age of 62 after living more than two decades beyond the massive mammal's usual life expectancy, zoo officials said.

Drilling of the seabed off Antarctica has revealed that rainforest grew on the frozen continent 52 million years ago, scientists said Thursday, warning it could be ice-free again within decades.

Two thirds of the continental United States is now suffering from the most widespread drought since the 1950s.

There are currently 232 industrial parks nationwide,, but only 143 IPs, or 61%, have built wastewater treatment facilities, said the environment watchdog.

Hundreds of strange birds which have appeared in the northern mountain province of Dien Bien recently have been confirmed as the rare Asian openbill stork.

Average temperatures in northern central Vietnam can rise by 3.5 degrees centigrade and dry season rainfall reduce by 30 percent by 2100, according to a new report prepared by the MONRE.

Vietnam is preparing to build a detailed scenario on the effects of climate change and related rises in sea levels.