Development of ecological and economic model to prevent land degradation and desertification in sandy coastal areas of Thach Ha district, Ha Tinh province
Desertification (according to the World Meteorology Organization 1994) is the degradation of ecosystems and spreading of a desert environment in arid, semi-arid and semi-wet places. The process of desertification manifests itself in intensification of aridity, lack of humidity, accumulation of salts in the earth, decrease in fertility of land, decrease in vegetative cover, change in species and expansion of sand banks or the encroachment of mobile sand dunes. Nowadays, desertification is a global process and is a pressing environmental problem in Vietnam.
Ha Tinh has 137 km of coast, running from C?a H?i to ?èo Ngang. The sand dunes and sandy land in the coast of Ha Tinh have an area of 78000 ha, constituting 11.9% of the total natural land area in the whole province. Ha Tinh coast is a barren area, with little potential to generate income and very harsh weather conditions. Ha Tinh coastal sand dunes in general and Thach Ha district in particular belong to the coastal sandy hot deserts with semi-bushes. The exploitation of Inmenit ore, Zinc ore and aquaculture on sand disregards the responsibility for environmental protection, together with the phenomenon of displaced sand, running sand due to wind and rain, filling up the rice field, accelerating the process of desertification, especially for areas without the system of protective forests. Every year, the province has 60 ha more of once-arable land that has been covered with sand and rendered unproductive. Due to unfavorable natural conditions, the standard of living of the people here is low, with poverty rate at approximately 50% (to 2001 benchmark), many people have to leave their homeland to work elsewhere. Therefore, the sustainable economic development of the fallow sandy coast of Ha Tinh using suitable models is the best way to ensure social security.
On the other hand, the direction of economic-social development of Ha Tinh province up to the year 2010 overlooks the economic development of agriculture and forestry of part of the coastal rural residents. Majority of the area of fallow sandy land has not been utilized effectively. Therefore, there is a need for an extensive, comprehensive and synchronous development strategy, step-wise supporting the people in developing models to improve coastal fallow land, limitting the arable land degradation and desertification, stabilizing the livelihood of the people in the sandy areas, helping to eliminate poverty, protect the environment and ensure social security in the coastal areas
Goal of the project:
Aiming for the sustainable development of the territory, restricting and preventing the desertification and improving sandy land on Ha Tinh coast from the area of Cua Sot to Cua Nhuong, helping to raise quality of life for the people in the coastal areas.
Specific objectives:
- To evaluate the state of degradation of land and desertification of Ha Tinh coast (from Cua Sot to Cua Nhuong), including Thach Van and Thach Dinh communes.
- To propose, design and construct the demonstration model of eco-village (cluster of residence) on the fallow land of Thach Van commune, Thach Ha district
- To upgrade,supplement and amend the model to prevent and counter land degradation and desertification at Thach Dinh. Relocate some households to Trang Chay area
- Evaluate the results of the model, draw and sum up experiences, edit according to the transfer guideline papers, recommend to the locality related policies in order to support the community and the people in multiplying the applied model for other localities in the area from Cua Sot to Cua Nhuong
Main activities:
- Field work, collecting materials, drafting up reports on the current state of desertification
- Construct demonstration model of eco-villages on the fallow land of a 60-ha area with 14 participating households
- Communal training on technical measures like land improvement, cultivation techniques for plants in agriculture and forestry, fruit trees, subsidiary crops, rearing of rabbits, cows, pigs, chicken, freshwater fish.
- Develop literature for the project like guide to design, construct and deploy the model of sustainable economic development on fallow sand dunes
- Organize seminars at the level of communes, district, province, areas to share experiences in order to support the multiplication of the model
Ha Tinh has 137 km of coast, running from C?a H?i to ?èo Ngang. The sand dunes and sandy land in the coast of Ha Tinh have an area of 78000 ha, constituting 11.9% of the total natural land area in the whole province. Ha Tinh coast is a barren area, with little potential to generate income and very harsh weather conditions. Ha Tinh coastal sand dunes in general and Thach Ha district in particular belong to the coastal sandy hot deserts with semi-bushes. The exploitation of Inmenit ore, Zinc ore and aquaculture on sand disregards the responsibility for environmental protection, together with the phenomenon of displaced sand, running sand due to wind and rain, filling up the rice field, accelerating the process of desertification, especially for areas without the system of protective forests. Every year, the province has 60 ha more of once-arable land that has been covered with sand and rendered unproductive. Due to unfavorable natural conditions, the standard of living of the people here is low, with poverty rate at approximately 50% (to 2001 benchmark), many people have to leave their homeland to work elsewhere. Therefore, the sustainable economic development of the fallow sandy coast of Ha Tinh using suitable models is the best way to ensure social security.
On the other hand, the direction of economic-social development of Ha Tinh province up to the year 2010 overlooks the economic development of agriculture and forestry of part of the coastal rural residents. Majority of the area of fallow sandy land has not been utilized effectively. Therefore, there is a need for an extensive, comprehensive and synchronous development strategy, step-wise supporting the people in developing models to improve coastal fallow land, limitting the arable land degradation and desertification, stabilizing the livelihood of the people in the sandy areas, helping to eliminate poverty, protect the environment and ensure social security in the coastal areas
Goal of the project:
Aiming for the sustainable development of the territory, restricting and preventing the desertification and improving sandy land on Ha Tinh coast from the area of Cua Sot to Cua Nhuong, helping to raise quality of life for the people in the coastal areas.
Specific objectives:
- To evaluate the state of degradation of land and desertification of Ha Tinh coast (from Cua Sot to Cua Nhuong), including Thach Van and Thach Dinh communes.
- To propose, design and construct the demonstration model of eco-village (cluster of residence) on the fallow land of Thach Van commune, Thach Ha district
- To upgrade,supplement and amend the model to prevent and counter land degradation and desertification at Thach Dinh. Relocate some households to Trang Chay area
- Evaluate the results of the model, draw and sum up experiences, edit according to the transfer guideline papers, recommend to the locality related policies in order to support the community and the people in multiplying the applied model for other localities in the area from Cua Sot to Cua Nhuong
Main activities:
- Field work, collecting materials, drafting up reports on the current state of desertification
- Construct demonstration model of eco-villages on the fallow land of a 60-ha area with 14 participating households
- Communal training on technical measures like land improvement, cultivation techniques for plants in agriculture and forestry, fruit trees, subsidiary crops, rearing of rabbits, cows, pigs, chicken, freshwater fish.
- Develop literature for the project like guide to design, construct and deploy the model of sustainable economic development on fallow sand dunes
- Organize seminars at the level of communes, district, province, areas to share experiences in order to support the multiplication of the model
Project Snapshot
Grantee:
Union of Science and Technology Associations of Ha Tinh Province
Country:
Viet nam
Area Of Work:
Land Degradation
Grant Amount:
US$ 49,928.00
Co-Financing Cash:
US$ 28,000.00
Co-Financing in-Kind:
US$ 25,000.00
Project Number:
VN/06/010
Status:
Satisfactorily Completed
Project Characteristics and Results
Capacity - Building Component
- The project management team, expert group and 15 farmers have been to visit and learn experience in building models of economic ecological villages in desert areas in Hai Lang district, Trieu Phong commune in Quang Tri province for three days.
- 01 conference held on 14/11/2007 to report status of desertification and land distribution maps from Sot sea entrance to Nhuong sea entrance by consultant team
- 01 conference to comment on the design model at the CPC in Thach Van, with the participation of 40 delegates including representatives of the departments concerned such as Agriculture and Rural Development, the Department of Science and Technology, Department of Natural Resources and Environment, DPC Thach Ha, Thach Van and households participating in the project
- 10 trainings for the community in the project area with a content of various areas (300 participants):
+ Cultivation (plant selection techniques, cultivation, preservation, land improvement by biological measures)
+ Animal Husbandry (technical pigs, chickens breeding, disease prevention, hygiene and housing, backyard chicken farming techniques)
+ Planting of forest trees (tree selection techniques, planting and care)
+ Fisheries development (digging ponds, drop and fish care)
+ Processing of organic fertilizer
+ Learn about environmental desertification, land degradation and the solutions
+ The local irrigation solution
- Workshops and conferences with field visits to promote model
- 02 technical seminars at lower and province level to assess the initial results of the model
- Guide and host more than 50 reporters from Vietnam Television, Voice of Vietnam, Tien Phong, Vietnam News Agency, Ha Tinh television, journalists and environmental forum to get information ... to promote projects
- Welcomed the Head of Department, units, groups and UNDP experts and Provicial people committee Chairman to visit the model
Emphasis on Sustainable Livelihoods
- Ha Tinh coast range is arid, low profitability, severe weather conditions. In the late rainy season, prolonged rainfall made the activity in spring crops to be almost ceased. The mining, aquaculture on sand do not indulge in environmental protection, and Sand flow due to the rain had made the area decertified more and more. Every year in the province, there were 60 hectares of farmland more covered by sand, unable to be cultivated or produced, causing tremendous damage to people.
- Due to natural inconvenient conditions, generally people's lives in this area were very low, the poverty rate of approximately 50% (according to the new 2001). The by-trade career less developed and income from fishing , aquaculture was negligible. Because of uncultivated wild land, difficult farming conditions, unable to live, many people had to migrate to other places
- Thach Van and Thach Dinh Commune, which had a lot of an area of uncultivated sandy, are in the range of sand dunes in the central coastal of Vietnam. The proportion of uncultivated sandy land is increasing.
- The project focused to build the model of coastal wild land improvement, to limit the land degradation of land and desertification, to stabilize people's lives on sandy areas, contributing to poverty reduction, environment protection and ensuring coastal security
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SGP Country office contact
Ms. Huyen Thu Thi NGUYEN
Phone:
(84 24) 38500150
Fax:
(84-24) 37265520
Email:
Ms. Ngoc Bich Kieu
Email:
Address
One Green UN house, 304 Kim Ma district
Hanoi, 100000
Hanoi, 100000
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