Can Tho (VNS/VNA) - High tides, dykes andland subsidence are causing serious flooding in urban areas inthe Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta region, according to Nguyen HuuThien, an expert on the Delta's ecosystem.

Thien told Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaperthat excessive exploitation of groundwater had contributedto severe subsidence in the Delta.

More than one million wells have been dug since the 1980s,and many dykes have been built along most of the Delta's rivers andcanals.

“A huge amount of water cannot be discharged to fields or ponds. As aresult, flooding occurs in urban areas,” Thien said.

Research by Utrecht University in the Netherlands published in 2017 showedthat the average land subsidence rate in the Mekong Delta is 1.1cm every12 months. In some places, it has reached 2.5cm per year.

By 2050, the land subsidence rate is expected to reach 35-140cm per year,while the sea level could rise 10cm per year.

With the speed of subsidence higher than the pace of rising sealevels, severe flooding could occur. 

Le Anh Tuan, deputy director of the Research Institute for Climate Change at CanTho University, said the water level on the Hau River in Can Tho city was 2.25mon September 30, higher than the peak tide of 2.23m recorded last year.

This is the highest level in the past few decades.

Only a number of new and upgraded streets are 2.3-2.5m high, a levelthat can prevent flooding. The height of old streets are from 1.6-2m,lower than flood levels, he said.

Most streets in the centre of Can Tho were covered with up to0.5-0.6m of water.

Ngo Thi Thanh Truc, a resident in Mau Than street in the city’s Ninh Kieu district,said the floods had affected her businesses and family life.

“In recent years, I had to close my business due to serious floods,”she said.

On October 1, a 50-year old woman died after falling into Bun XangLake in Can Tho city’s Ninh Kieu district.

The accident occurred at around 6.30pm while the woman was riding her motorbikeon the road along the lake.

The women could not distinguish between the water in the lake and the floods,passersby said. People in the area tried to save her but it wastoo late because of the deep water.

Urban areas in An Giang, Vinh Long, Soc Trang and Hau Giang provinces are alsofacing the same situation.

“Solutions are needed to mitigate the losses,” Tuan said.

Hoang Minh Tuyen from the Ministry of NaturalResources and Environment’s Department of Water Resource Managementsaid the water flowing down from the upstream region hadnot caused flooding across the delta region. The water levelsmeasured on the upstream of the dams were still low, he said.

On October 2, the water levels were 3.51m at Tha La Dam and 3.5m at Tra Sư Dam.

“Climate change and rising sea levels are the causes of the unusually hightides,” he said.

Tidal peaks are much higher than the average levels in previous years, often by15-16cm.

Nguyen Van Thanh, head of the Vietnam Road Administration’s Road ManagementDepartment No.4, said there were 31 flood-prone sites on sevennational highways. The department plans to upgrade these areasbased on results of a survey of areas often hit by floods.

Priority will be given to a 1km-long section on National Highway 1A in VinhLong province’s Tam Bình district which was 50-60cm under water.

Improvement work on flooded areas in Hau Giang, Soc Trang, Bac Lieu and AnGiang provinces will also occur next year./.