Consequences of Climate Change: A Vietnam Case Study Report

This report examines the multifaceted consequences of climate change in Vietnam. The study highlights how Vietnam's geographical location and diverse topographical features make it highly vulnerable to climate change impacts. It discusses the effects on various natural resources, including mineral resources, renewable energy sources, water resources, and aquatic ecosystems. The report emphasizes the increased risks of flooding and droughts, exacerbated by climate change, and their impact on agriculture and infrastructure. Furthermore, it addresses the threat of rising sea levels and storms, which could damage the mining industry and coastal regions. The report also touches upon the potential destruction of hydroelectric plants due to droughts and the risks to aquatic life. Overall, the report underscores the urgent need for measures to mitigate and adapt to the severe effects of climate change in Vietnam. The report cites multiple academic sources to support its findings.

Running head: CONSEQUENCES OF CLIMATE CHANGE: VIETNAM
Consequences of Climate Change: Vietnam
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1CONSEQUENCES OF CLIMATE CHANGE: VIETNAM
Climate change can be referred to as the transformation in the weather conditions for
several decades. Climate change is caused due to the changes in the climate for more than a
decade due to either natural or anthropogenic disturbances. The change of climate is due to the
enhancement of the natural processes of greenhouse effect the major drivers of which are
burning of fossil fuels which are ecologically incompatible, the changes in coverage and usage of
land volcanic eruptions as also the changes in solar radiations.
The long coastline of Vietnam, its geographical location, diversity of topographical
features and the variations in climate are the reasons for it being one of the countries in the Asia-
Pacific region which is prone to maximum hazards. In addition to this storms and flooding are
responsible for financial and human losses. Keeping in mind the fact that a considerable
proportion of the country’s population and financial assets are located in the coastal lowlands
and delta regions, the country Vietnam has been ranked among the five countries most likely to
be impacted by changes in the climate (Thao et al. 2014).
In case of Vietnam the impact of changes in climate is quite severe. The impact is felt on
the natural resources of Vietnam namely the mineral resources, renewable energy, water
resources, forest resources and also the aquatic resources.
Flooding being the subject of the dynamics of monsoon brings heavy rainfall in the
northern and southern parts in the mid year and in the central regions in the year end. Due to the
high inter annual rainfall in Vietnam and rainy days certain places have a probability of
experiencing floods the time of rains and droughts during the dry seasons. The south central
coast region is affected by prolonged amount of droughts (Rutten et al. 2014).

2CONSEQUENCES OF CLIMATE CHANGE: VIETNAM
It is expected that climate change will exacerbate the rainfall variability so that the floods
and droughts occur more with the crops being much more open to damage. Another major risk
worth understanding is posed by the rise of sea level.
With respect to the mineral resources in Vietnam it can be said that they are relatively
diverse. The rising sea levels and storms are responsible for bringing about difficulties and can
also engulf the mining industry. There is a significant amount of renewable energy specifically
wind, solar, geothermal, hydro energy among other forms. Droughts and floods have chances of
destroying dams, deplete the water of rivers and streams which will cause hydro electric plants to
stop operating (Field 2012).
In Vietnam about 11000 species of aquatic creatures reside in ecosystems which exceed
20 in number. At the time of rise of mercury level, affecting the aquaculture several animals and
plants might die and many freshwater species might have to suffer and lose their habitats due to
the rise in the sea levels. Floods, cyclones and storms can cause a severe amount of damage to
the fishing activities art se including in rivers and lakes (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change 2014).
Thus in order to prevent the effects of climate change on Vietnam, suitable measures
needs to be taken to prevent the severity of such effects.

3CONSEQUENCES OF CLIMATE CHANGE: VIETNAM
References:
Field, C.B. ed., 2012. Managing the risks of extreme events and disasters to advance climate
change adaptation: special report of the intergovernmental panel on climate change. Cambridge
University Press.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2014. Climate Change 2014–Impacts, Adaptation
and Vulnerability: Regional Aspects. Cambridge University Press.
Rutten, M., Van Dijk, M., van Rooij, W. and Hilderink, H., 2014. Land use dynamics, climate
change, and food security in Vietnam: A global-to-local modeling approach. World
Development, 59, pp.29-46.
Thao, N.D., Takagi, H. and Esteban, M. eds., 2014. Coastal Disasters and Climate Change in
Vietnam: Engineering and Planning Perspectives. Elsevier.