Environment

Mekong Delta most vulnerable to flooding because of sea level rise

An 80-cm rise in the sea level could leave 31.94 percent of the Mekong Delta permanently flooded, according to the 2020 version of the climate change scenario report recently released by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE).
Mekong Delta most vulnerable to flooding because of sea level rise ảnh 1Ho Chi Minh City has been affected by flooding caused by rising sea levels for years. (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – An 80-cm rise in the sea levelcould leave 31.94 percent of the Mekong Delta permanently flooded,according to the 2020 version of the climate change scenario report recentlyreleased by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE).

The risk of flooding caused by sea level rise will be likelyto increase on account of a combination of different factors, from geologicaluplift, subsidence, to tides and storm surges.

Land subsidence has been adversely affecting the Mekong Deltaand Ho Chi Minh City which have the lowest elevation in the country.

Data from the MoNRE shows that the Mekong Delta is subsidingby an average 1cm per year, even up to 5.7cm per year in some locations, whilethe sea level rises around 3 – 5cm a year, said Assoc. Prof, Dr Le Anh Tuan,Deputy Director of the Research Institute for Climate Change at the Can ThoUniversity.

He suggested that the Mekong Delta and HCM City developscenarios and its consequences for different levels of sea rise and evaluatethe level of resilience associated with the surges. Southern localities must also develop roadmaps for adaption to sea level rise based ondifferent projections and have backup plans in case projections are exceeded, hesaid./.
VNA
#climate change#sea level rise#flooding#land subsidence#Mekong Delta#HCM City#Vietnam#Vietnam news#Vietnam News Agency#Vietnamplus
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