Mangrove forest degradation and shoreline erosion in the Mekong delta: a case study from Ben Tre province

Bijeesh Kozhikkodan Veettil; Ngo Xuan Quang; Nguyen Thi Kim Dung; Duong Quoc Bao; Tran Xuan-Linh; Hoang Nhat-Duc

doi:10.15625/2525-2518/16555

Author affiliations

Authors

Bijeesh Kozhikkodan Veettil Institute of Fundamental and Applied Sciences, Duy Tan University, 6 Tran Nhat Duat Street, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam
Ngo Xuan Quang Department of Environmental Management and Technology, Institute of Tropical Biology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, 85 Tran Quoc Toan Street, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2587-1999
Nguyen Thi Kim Dung Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology, University of Sciences, VNU-HCM, 227 Nguyễn Văn Cừ Street, District 5, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam
Duong Quoc Bao Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology, University of Sciences, VNU-HCM, 227 Nguyễn Văn Cừ Street, District 5, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam
Tran Xuan-Linh Institute of Research and Development, Duy Tan University, 3 Quang Trung Street, Hai Chau District, Da Nang, Viet Nam
Hoang Nhat-Duc Institute of Research and Development, Duy Tan University, 3 Quang Trung Street, Hai Chau District, Da Nang, Viet Nam

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15625/2525-2518/16555

Keywords:

coastal erosion, bioshield, coastal protection, Ben Tre Province, mangroves.

Abstract

Viet Nam’s coastline faces many natural and human-induced threats, such as erosion, floods, sea-level changes, pollution and saltwater intrusion. Low lying deltas, such as the Mekong Delta and the Red River Delta of Viet Nam are frequently subjected to such threats. The present study investigated the degradation of mangrove forests and changes in shoreline along the coast of Ben Tre. For this purpose, we used spectral indices, such as the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) for mapping mangrove vegetation and the normalized difference water index (NDWI) for estimating shoreline changes. The possibilities, advantages and limitations of coastal vegetation, such as mangroves, casuarina and pandanus, as a bioshield for shoreline protection in Ben Tre coast of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD) were also discussed. The results show that coastal areas covered with newly planted mangroves showed reduced or no erosion. Currently, several hard structures have been used for short-term protection from coastal erosion in Ben Tre. For long-term coastal protection, the present study suggested an ecosystem-based adaptation using bioshield for Ben Tre coast. A combination of hard structures reinforced with bioshield is recommended for long-term and sustainable coastal protection in Ben Tre.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Veettil B. K., Costi J., Marques W. C., Tran X. L., Quang N.X., Van D. D., Hoai P. N. - Coastalenvironmental changes in Southeast Asia: A study from Quang Nam Province, Central Vietnam, Regional Studies in Marine Science 39 (2020a) 101420. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsma.2020.101420. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsma.2020.101420

Friess D. A., Krauss K., Horstman E. M., Balke T., Bouma T. J., Galli D., Webb E. L. - Areall intertidal wetlands naturally created equal? Bottlenecks, thresholds and knowledge gaps to mangrove and saltmarsh ecosystems, Biol. Rev. Camb. Phil. Soc. 87 (2) (2012) 346-366. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-185X.2011.00198.x. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-185X.2011.00198.x

Veettil B. K., Costi J., Quang N. X., Nam T. V., Van D. D., Hoai P. N. - Anthropogenicinfluence on Coastal environmental changes in the Mekong Delta: a study from Ben Tre, Southern Viet Nam, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment (in press).

Veettil B. K., Ward R. D., Lima M. D. A. C., Stankovic M., Hoai P. N., Quang N. X. – Opportunitiesfor seagrass research derived from remote sensing: A review of current methods, Ecological Indicators 117 (2020b) 106560. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind. 2020.106560. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2020.106560

Barbier E. B. - Estuarineand Coastal Ecosystems as Defence Against Flood Damages: An Economic Perspective, Frontiers in Climate 2 (2020) 594254. https://doi.org/10.3389/ fclim.2020.594254. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fclim.2020.594254

Montgomery J. M., Bryan K. R., Mullarney J. C., Hortsman E. M. - Attenuationof storm surges by coastal mangroves. Geophys, Res. Lett. 46 (5) (2019) 2680-2689. https://doi.org/10.1029/2018GL081636. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1029/2018GL081636

Veettil B. K., Pereira S. F. R., Quang N. X. - Rapidlydiminishing mangrove forests in Myanmar (Burma): a review, Hydrobiologia 822 (2018) 19-35. https://doi.org/10.1007/ s10750-018-3673-1. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-018-3673-1

Hoa L. T. V., Nhan N. H., Wolanski E., Cong T. T., Shigeko H. - Thecombined impact on the flooding in Vietnam’s Mekong River delta of local man-made structures, sea level rise, and dams upstream in the river catchment, Estuar. Coast Shelf Sci. 71 (1-2) (2007) 110-116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2006.08.021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2006.08.021

Veettil B. K., Ward R. D., Quang N. X., Trang N. T. T., Giang T. H. - Mangrovesof Vietnam: Historical development, current state of research and future threats, Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci. 218 (5) (2019a) 212-236. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. ecss.2018.12.021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2018.12.021

Veettil B. K., Quang N. X., Trang N. T. T. - Changesin mangrove vegetation, aquaculture and paddy cultivation in the Mekong Delta: A study from Ben Tre Province, southern Viet Nam, Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 226 (2019b) 106273. https://doi.org/10.1016/ j.ecss.2019.106273. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2019.106273

Carew-Reid J. - RapidAssessment of the Extent and Impact of Sea Level Rise in Viet Nam, Climate Change Discussion Paper 1. ICEM - International Centre for Environmental Management, Brisbane, Australia, 2007.

Nguyen T. P., Parnell K. E. - Coastalland use planning in Ben Tre, Vietnam: constraints and recommendations, Heliyon 5 (2019) e01487. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon. 2019.e01487. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2019.e01487

Rahman M. A., Rahman M. A. - Effectivenessof coastal bio-shield for reduction of the energy from storm surges and cyclones, Procedia Engineering 56 (2013) 676-685. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2013.03.177. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2013.03.177

Feagin R. A., Mukherjee N., Shanker K., et al. - Shelterfrom the storm? Use and misuse of coastal vegetation bioshields for managing natural disasters, Conservation Letters 3 (1) (2010) 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-263X.2009.00087.x. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-263X.2009.00087.x

Liu S., Li X., Chen D., Duan Y., Ji H., Zhang L., Chai Q., Hu X. - UnderstandingLand use/Land cover dynamics and impacts of human activities in the Mekong Delta over the last 40 years, Global Ecology and Conservation 22 (2020) e00991. https://doi.org/ 10.1016/j.gecco.2020.e00991. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2020.e00991

Veettil B. K., Ward R. W., Dung N. T. K., Van D. D., Quang N. X., Hoai P. N. - Theuse of bioshields for coastal protection in Vietnam: current status and potential, Regional Studies in Marine Science 47 (2021) 101945. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsma.2021.101945. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsma.2021.101945

Menéndez P., Losada I. J., Torres-Ortega S., Narayan S., Beck M. W. - TheGlobal Flood Protection Benefits of Mangroves, Sci. Rep. 10 (2020) 4404. https://doi.org/10.1038/ s41598-020-61136-6. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-61136-6

Veettil B. K., Van D. D., Quang N. X., Hoai P. N., Hoang N. D. - Spatiotemporaldynamics of mangrove forests in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (India), Regional Studies in Marine Science 39 (2020c) 101455. https://doi.org/10.1016/ j.rsma.2020.101455. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsma.2020.101455

Satheeshkumar P., Siva Sankar R., Senthil kumar D., Athithan A. - Didmangroves offer an effective barrier to the Thane cyclone surges? Curr. Sci. 103 (2012) 981-982.

Sandilyan S., Kathiresan K. - Mangrovesas bioshield: An undisputable fact, Ocean and Coastal Management 103 (2015) 94-96. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2014.11.011. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2014.11.011

Sidik F., Kusuma D. W., Priyono B., Proisy C., Lovelock C. E. - Chapter22 - Managing sediment dynamics through reintroduction of tidal flow for mangrove restoration in abandoned aquaculture ponds, In: Sidik F, Friess DA (Eds.) Dynamic Sedimentary Environments of Mangrove Coasts (2021) 563-582. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-816437-2.00004-5. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-816437-2.00004-5

Anthony E. J., Goichot M. - SedimentFlow in the Context of Mangrove and Restoration: A Rapid Assessment Guidance Manual, 2019.

Oh R. R. Y., Friess D. A., Brown B. M. - Therole of surface elevation in the rehabilitation of abandoned aquaculture ponds to mangrove forests, Sulawesi, Indonesia. Ecological Engineering 100 (2017) 325-334. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2016.12.021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2016.12.021