Soc Trang (VNS/VNA) - Farmers in theMekong Delta province of Soc Trang have adopted many new farmingmodels to adapt to climate change, which has helped them cope with the severesaltwater intrusion.

They include farming shrimp orsaline resistant crops in the dry season in their rice fields.

In many areas, rice farmersgrow only specialty rice or have switched completely to other crops for higherincomes or because they are adapted to saltwater unlike rice.

In My Xuyen district, farmershave adopted the shrimp - rice farming model on an area of 17,500ha, thelargest in the province.

The model has been adopted incoastal areas for many years. It sees farmers growing rice in the rainy seasonand breeding shrimp in the dry season on the same fields. Both are clean sincethe farmers use little pesticide or chemical.

The model offers farmers anincome of more than 40 million VND (1,730 USD) per hectare per year, possiblylower than from other farming models but sustainable and with high-qualityproduce, according to the province Department of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment.

Luong Minh Quyet, director ofthe department, said shrimp bred under the model have few diseases since thecultivation of rice helps reduce pathogens and the rice grows well since thesoil is fertile because of shrimp waste.

The province has created manyspecialty and fragrant rice strains that are resistant to drought and saltwaterlike ST20, ST21, ST24, and ST25.

ST25 rice won the first prizein the 2019 World’s Best Rice Contest.

Specialty and fragrantvarieties now account for 50 percent of the province’s total rice growing area.

Advanced techniques

Farmers in the province alsoincreasingly use advanced techniques to increase yields and reduce the use ofwater and labour.

The province has also providedfinancial support to farmers adopting advanced techniques.

Its project to develop fruitfarming, for instance, subsidises the cost of automatic irrigation systems fororchards.

Nguyen Van Ut, who has a7,000sq.m longan orchard in Cu Lao Dung district’s An Than Tay commune, hasinstalled one using the subsidy.

The system could also be usedto spray fertilisers and pesticides, reducing the cost of labour, he said.

“I am happy the project hashelped me resolve the irrigation issue.”

Nguyen Thanh Phuoc, head of theprovince’s Plant Protection and Cultivation Sub-department, said the currentwater shortage saltwater intrusion could impact fruit growing areas, and sofarmers should keep saltwater out of their orchards and store freshwater whenauthorities say they could draw water from irrigation canals.

They should use automaticirrigation systems and cover the bed of irrigation ditches in orchards withplastic sheets, he said.

The sub-department wouldcontinue to inform farmers about what crops including fruits to grow tomitigate possible damage if drought and saltwater intrusion last for long, hesaid.

Before the recent winter –spring rice crop province authorities had told farmers to sow it earlier thannormal or switch to other crops to avoid the impacts of drought and saltwaterintrusion, enabling farmers in many localities to prevent losses.

Le Thi Anh of Long Phu district’s Tan Hung commune has stopped growing winter – spring rice on her 2,000sq.mfield and switched to straw mushroom instead.

She has harvested more than150kg of mushroom and earned 6 million VND (260 USD) so far and expects to harvestdozens of kilogrammes more, she said.

Nguyen Huu Tai, chairman of the Tan Hung communal People’s Committee, said to cope with the water shortage andsaltwater intrusion, the commune has encouraged farmers to grow other crops insome rice growing areas, including straw mushroom.

The mushroom farming model iseffective, he said, adding, “We will co-operate with relevant agencies toexpand the model to adapt to climate change.”

With its coastline of 72km, Soc Trang is one of the delta provinces hardest hit by saltwater intrusion in thedry season.

The delta is this year facingsevere saltwater intrusion, estimated to be as bad or worse than the recordintrusion in 2015-16./.