Ben Tre (VNA) - The Mekong Delta province of Ben Tre plansto convert 6,000 hectares of low-efficient rice production to high-value crops inorder to adapt to the increasingly severe impacts of climate change, a localofficial said.

According to the provincial Department ofAgriculture and Rural Development, in 2016, the rice growing area was 58,246hectares, falling 7.5 percent from 2015 while the areas developed for grass andcoconut cultivation were 3,035 hectares and 69,330 hectares, up 15.8 percentand 1.1 percent, respectively.

In the context of increasing saltwater intrusion,over 852 hectares of low-harvest rice have been shifted to other crops withhigher values, such as fruit trees, vegetables, and grass used as feed forlivestock.

In 2013, Nguyen Tri Nhan from Chau Hung commune,Binh Dai district planted 120 coconut trees on 4,000 sq. m. of rice growing land.After three years, the coconut trees started giving fruits and he earned over50 million VND in 2016.

Nhan said he toiled and spent more money growingrice but getting lower profit than the cultivation of coconut trees.

Now he grew coconut trees on 8,000 sq. m. oflow-efficient rice fields.

Meanwhile, Vo Thanh Long, also from the commune,said he grew custard-apple trees instead of rice, and could earn 50 million VNDon 1,000 sq. m. of land, much higher than rice.

Tran Phong Linh, Vice Chairman of the Chau Hungcommune People’s Committee said local farmers can earn a profit of between500,000 – 700,000 VND from a rice crop but 7 – 8 million VND per year from fruittrees, even 20 – 25 million VND per year from pomelo trees.

Nguyen Tan Khoa from Quoi Dien commune, Thanh Phudistrict said he grew coconut trees and grass instead of rice on over 3,000 sq.m, and raised five cows and 10 goats. He said he will reduce the herd when thecoconut trees grow up.

According to Truong Thanh Hai, an agricultureofficial from Thanh Phu district said the district was seriously affected bydroughts and saltwater intrusion in 2016. To cope with the situation, localfarmers were encouraged to grow saltwater-tolerant crops.

In 2016, around 300 hectares of rice growing landwere replaced with coconuts and grass.

The Mekong Delta has more than 3.8 millionhectares of agricultural land, and the area for rice farming accounts forroughly half of it, ranging between 1.6-1.8 million hectares. 

The region makes up nearly 50 percent of thenation’s rice growing area, more than 70 percent of area for aquaculture,producing 40 percent of total agricultural production value, and more than 50percent of aquatic product output. 

A climate change scenario shows that 90 percentof the agricultural land in the Mekong Delta is vulnerable to flooding, and 70percent to saline intrusion. 

Rice productivity is projected to fall by 50percent by 2100 due to increasing floods and saline intrusion.-VNA