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A podcast about navigating the crisis, solutions, and future of the Mekong Delta.
I saw how generous the local environment could offer us. However, for many generations, like parents, uncles, aunts, grandparents, you know, the older generations, They did not use the environment efficiently. If we continue like that, it is most likely that the environment would have nothing left to offer us. Therefore, I think I need to take action, and I choose to take those actions through Abovina with the way I run the organization.
Mari Pilling:Welcome to the final episode of The Dying Dragons, The Future. I'm your host, Mari Pilling. Last episode, we learned how rapid urbanization has led to severe water pollution and the different ways the people of Vietnam impact their environment. Waste management requires daily trash collection in urban areas by employing services like Urenco. Urenco's services play a vital role, yet the ongoing surge in urbanization continues to present a growing challenge.
Mari Pilling:Ngyen Phuc, a tour guide from the Cai Rang floating market, says
Ngyen Phuc:Some residents, they don't want to be charged by the trash collector, So they just put into, like just litter the trash into the into the street or literally on on the river in the river. They think that the money they spend for a trust collector is is not, like, worth it.
Mari Pilling:Treating the dragons like a unified system and recognizing the interconnectedness of ecosystems is a part of the whole master plan.
Dr. Thein:The National Assembly passed to us the planning law first time ever. Now the Delta have only one plant, must known as the master plant. The master plant regional master plant allow us to, look at the delta as a whole, to treat the delta as a whole rather than rather than just pieces. Because in the past, when the province did the plant, they didn't care about the neighboring provinces. When they want to build a road, they build it.
Dr. Thein:When they build the canals, they build it. They didn't care about the water processes. So whatever your neighbors do, they don't care. Just just the they pursue their own their own objectives, provincial objectives. Now there's a master plan, and the provincial plan is to to downscale to the local context.
Dr. Thein:It allows us an opportunity to treat the Delta as a a home. It's really a new thing.
Mari Pilling:Local governments in the Mekong Delta prioritize wastewater management but grapple with challenges from increasing urbanization. The master plan aims to achieve a net zero carbon emissions by 2050 through renewable energy resources in the Mekong Delta. According to the United States Agency of International Development.
Dr. Thein:Luckily, in 2017, the government of Vietnam recognized the seriousness of the of the, the issues that the Delta is facing. So the then former prime minister, held a, the biggest the biggest ever, the first of its kind, conference on the Delta. It was called the Jin Hong Conference, named after a conference in the 14th century when the Mongols invaded Vietnam, and we needed the national assembly decision whether to to surrender, to fight with the Mongols. So, this conference on the Delta, named after them, the conference to to signify the importance of of the of the decision, how to treat the Delta.
Mari Pilling:Under the resolution 120, Vietnam has the master plan launched in 2022 by the new prime minister Pho Minh Chinh temporarily accepting the existing infrastructure near the coast and retreating the freshwater zone into land, letting the natural water be restored, fully surrendering to nature by 2030.
Dr. Thein:In the, so called freshenization project. Freshenization is not an an English term, a Vietnamese term. We build structure to keep salinity out, keep freshwater inside, retain freshwater inside all year round to freshenize it, it. Changing the Delta's developments like steering a massive ship. It won't be easy.
Dr. Thein:We now have a very good framework, but implementation is an another story because many people still hold on to the the old way of thinking. The food security concept need to be removed. People need to be educated, reeducated to realize that it's a false concept. Maximizing rights production is not is not food security, and maintaining maintaining the status quo, meaning you're gonna go on the same way. We need to to pave the road for the new vision instead of sticking to the old way.
Dr. Thein:So now the delta is facing a multi dimensional crisis with many serious issues, including our own mistakes, unsustainable way of economic growth. And the doubt is that the, at the crossroad, the government of Vietnam has developed a very good very good policy framework. It takes time to implement. It's not easy. It won't happen in 1 or 2 days.
Dr. Thein:It takes years, but, I'm an optimistic. We are slowing down. That's sign that we are slowing down on the old part. We are not continuing, full speed on the on the on the old road. We are not there yet.
Dr. Thein:We are not on the new road yet, but we are slowing down, and we start to change direction. We so we are not gonna hit that iceberg. The Titanic, we're not gonna hit that iceberg. We're gonna change, and it will take some more years.
Mari Pilling:Talking to the residents who have lived on the river for more than 20 years, sharing their thoughts of the future.
Nguyen Thanh Quoc:That's why I'm afraid. You know? For example, when it rains at night, the wind blows. Being on a boat scares me, especially since I have kids on the boat. It is less scary if we are on land.
Nguyen Thanh Quoc:If something happens, it is very devastating. I think everyone will live on land if they have a choice. We still sell products here and have a living space here to stay if we need to. However, at the end of the day, having a house on land to go back to when we have time is better. Most people who live on boats are either people who don't have land, or if they do, their land is too far away to travel every day to sell.
Nguyen Thanh Quoc:As I live and work here, my only hope is for the floating market to still exist. Locals like us can manage to live with that. However, I don't think the market will still exist in the near future.
Thoa Nguyen Thi Kim:Do you wish for anything?
Nguyen Thanh Quoc:Not really. Now I just plan to keep working as long as I can and save enough to return to my hometown and build a home. I don't have much hope in that market.
Thoa Nguyen Thi Kim:I hope the floating market will grow big again.
Nguyen Thanh Quoc:In the next 10 years, how do you see the floating market?
Thoa Nguyen Thi Kim:That is my hope. But to be honest, I think the floating market will disappear. If we continue like this, the floating market will disappear. If vendors like me can't make a living from this line of work anymore,
Dr. Thein:I'm
Thoa Nguyen Thi Kim:sure we will all sell our boats and move on land and maybe find another more stable job. If the business does not work, why would I stay here? We have to work together. For example, if I, only I, follow all the rules and keep the place clean, but other boats don't, then it would change nothing. We can't stop them.
Thoa Nguyen Thi Kim:It really is up to their awareness.
Nguyen Thanh Quoc:But what is your expectation in terms of the water level or the sanitation?
Thoa Nguyen Thi Kim:If the amount of garbage on the river is under control, the water will be clean, and it would attract more tourists to come. My business will have a better outcome. Therefore, I hope the river stays out of pollution. In general, in Vietnam, there are concerns, but also I have so many things that I'm proud of. More things to be proud of than be concerned about, I would say.
Thoa Nguyen Thi Kim:However, the general public in Vietnam does not have enough awareness about how to keep the environment clean. If we can do like what the Western countries do with no trash on the street at all, Vietnam would reach a new chapter then. For example, one time we witnessed a taxi driver throw his food packaging on the street, and a Westerner came to call him out. He hit the Western guy. That was so embarrassing.
Mari Pilling:The Mekong Delta, renowned for its rich biodiversity and vital ecosystems, faces mounting pressures from human activities. Pollution from various sources such as trash and waste water, coupled with rapid urbanization, has placed immense strain on this delicate region, destroying plants and wildlife. Communities, governments, and organizations are coming together to implement innovative solutions from waste management initiatives to eco friendly urban planning strategies. By harnessing the power of technology, education, and collective action, they can help keep the 7 remaining dragons alive.
Dr. Thein:And it's difficult to imagine Vietnam without the Delta to exist as a state. We were hungry before, but the Delta rescued the nation out of Hungary. Put down the Delta, we might go hungry again, and nobody knows what we're gonna do to our neighbors and to the world.
Mari Pilling:Nebraska Lincoln College of Journalism and Mass Communications production. We would like to thank our sponsor, the Buffett Fund, along with our partners in Vietnam, the Global Engagement Institute, along with Can Thao University, and finally, the Asian Community and Cultural Center in Lincoln, Nebraska.