Tyndall centre for climate change research

Short- and long-term solutions to prevent floods in HCM City haven't been effective. The city is easily flooded because of heavy rains or high tides. The latter are affected by climate change and land subsidence. There are tens of ‘hot spots’ in HCM City which will become inundated in heavy rains or high tide. On October 28, a lot of roads in districts 2, 4, 7, 8, Binh Tan, Binh Thanh and Thu Duc were inundated because of the effects of a high tide spell. Meteorological expert Le Thi Xuan Lan said the water level in the estuaries rise on days during high tide, causing the tide to peak because of the strong monsoon wind. However, the underlying cause for this phenomenon is the subsidence of the land, excessive construction and underground water exploitation. HCM City to be cleared by 2050? Thien Nhien HCM City considers flood-prevention project with Dutch technology To cope with rainfall, sea water level rise and land subsidence, HCM City is discussing with … [Read more...] about HCM City struggles to deal with floods

Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh (R) hosts a reception for Andy Kinsella, Chief Executive Officer of Ireland-based Mainstream Renewable Power (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh hosted a reception for Andy Kinsella, Chief Executive Officer of Ireland-based Mainstream Renewable Power, in Hanoi on November 20. The official spoke highly of the Irish company’s investment in Vietnam in the renewable energy industry, which the country has huge demand for and many Irish businesses boast strength in. She highlighted that electricity is among vital demands in Vietnam’s sustainable development orientations, highly valuing the feasibility of Mainstream Renewable Power’s current wind energy project. The Vice President voiced her hope that the company’s project will promptly go into operation. Vietnam’s Phu Cuong Group and the Irish company recently signed a cooperation deal worth 2 billion USD to build and operate a wind farm … [Read more...] about Ireland’s renewable energy developer pledges support for Vietnam

Dengue fever epidemics could be forecast up to eight months in advance by a new satellite-based, early warning system. The rising number of dengue fever patients is overloading the Tropical Medicine Faculty at Da Nang Hospital as the outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease in the central city has reached "alarming level", according to the Da Nang Disease Control Centre. VNA/VNS Photo Van Dung This system, known as D-MOSS, is being developed by a consortium led by HR Wallingford and sponsored by the United Kingdom Space Agency’s International Partnership Programme. D-MOSS is developing a forecasting system in which earth observation datasets are combined with weather forecasts to predict the likelihood of dengue epidemics. The project, which started in Vietnam last year, aims to develop an operational early warning system to improve dengue prevention and increase control capacity. It creates better understanding of the relationships between environmental stressors, the … [Read more...] about Satellite system helps forecast dengue epidemics in Vietnam

Many large players including Vingroup, Hoa Phat Group and Thaco Group are becoming strategic investors in agricultural companies. — Photo baodansinh.vn Digitisation of farming is inevitable and Viet Nam should embrace it to resolve the agricultural paradox of producing more while preserving natural resources and to grab the opportunities brought by free trade agreements, experts have said. Reports from research organisations said the world population would increase by 2.2 billion by 2050 and demand for food would increase by 50 per cent. During this period climate change is expected to reduce harvests by 17 per cent while arable land will shrink by 20 per cent. The agricultural sector globally and in Viet Nam is therefore set to face big challenges. A more resilient food future will rely on sharp increases in agricultural research and development; better alignment of government finance and incentives for farmers with long-term, sustainable and climate-smart production; and a … [Read more...] about Digital farming could hold the key to solving agriculture paradox

  Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Kailash Satyarthi (left) presented the prizes to Luisa Neubauer (centre - on behalf of Thunberg) and Divina Maloum (right). — AFP/VNA Photo THE HAGUE — Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg was awarded an international children's peace prize on Wednesday, for her work in the struggle against climate change which has resonated with schoolchildren across the world. Cameroonian peace activist Divina Maloum, aged 15, also received the International Children's Peace Prize, awarded by the Dutch KidsRight organisation, which has been handing out the prize since 2005. Thunberg could not accept her award in person at the ceremony in The Hague because she is crossing the Atlantic by boat on her way to an international climate conference in Madrid. However, she sent a message saying she was "incredibly grateful and honoured for this prize". The 16-year-old climate campaigner left the United States in mid-November, hitching a ride to Europe … [Read more...] about Greta Thunberg awarded international children’s peace prize