As the flow of the Hong (Red) River changed due to the impacts ofclimate change and socio-economic development, the Red River Deltaregion would face problems, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment Hoang Van Thang warned at a recent workshop.

Climate change has redirected the flow and reduced the quality of theriver, according to Thang. Moreover, cities and provinces in the deltaregion, including Hanoi, Bac Ninh and Ha Nam, have reduced the number ofponds, lakes and rivers collecting water as they developed roadinfrastructure.

Socio-economic development and pollution alsoseriously hurt the quality of the water. Development reduced forestland,leading to land erosion along and in the river as well as a lack ofwater in the lower basin. People also polluted the river byover-exploiting natural resources and overusing chemical substances inthe agriculture sector.

Thang said that the country needed along-term plan to cope with these changes. The Government would have toimprove the preservation of the river environment and use moderntechnology to help cities and provinces benefit from the river, he said.Additionally, people and private enterprises would have to stop wastingfresh water.

The workshop was organised by the Ministry ofAgriculture and Rural Development and the French Agency for Developmentas part of a project to understand the impacts of climate change onwater use in the Red River basin. Initiated in 2009, the project isexpected to wrap up in 2016.-VNA