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Vietnamese sea and the “blue development” tendency
Is that true that Vietnam only has 3260 kilometers in length of coastline? If applying a new way of thinking when developing a sea economy, considering the sea as a living environment, not only the place to earn living, the total length of the coastline would be double and triple.
In 2004, the US collected 23 billion dollars from the exports of ornamental fish in the coral reef areas and the recreational fisheries. Meanwhile, Vietnam earned 4.5 billion dollars only from fish catching and aquaculture in 2010.
Better late than never
Associate Professor Dr Nguyen Chu Hoi, Deputy Director General Department of Vietnam Sea and Islands, had to wait from 1998 until May 2010 to see his wishes come true: the planned system of marine protected areas (MPA) in Vietnam until 2020 was approved by the Prime Minister.
Hoi said he felt regret at the tardiness of the plan. As the plan came out 10 years later, it did not catch the special interests from international donors, because the donors’ interest has been shifted to the climate change. Meanwhile, while waiting for the MPA programming, the preservation potentials of the MPAs have decreased. For example, the coral coverage has reduced from 70 percent to 30 percent over the overexploitation.
However, Hoi still feels happy because the MPA plan has been approved, which now allows to take management and protect them from the external harm.
According to Hoi, 70 percent of the value of the MPA are the coral reefs, called the pioneer ecosystem, which together with other ecosystems, are considered the home for creatures to reside.
“Therefore, we can recover coral reefs artificially by sinking old fishing ships and boats and think about developing ecological economy,” Hoi said.
The idea of sinking old ships was raised by Hoi in 2005 which got the support of the specialists of some countries. However, in Vietnam, no one dare to do that so far.
In early 2010, Australia sank the battleship made by the US in 1936 to create artificial coral reefs. In France, a MPA was raised their design protected areas in the Mediterranean coastal areas, where there is a wrecked ship in the 18th century. Travelers and visitors can dive for watching the ship with the fee of 10 dollars.
“If Vietnam sinks old ships to create coral reefs and help people recover the aquatic resources, we will help generate new careers for people,” Hoi said.
For example, at the Co To MPA in Quang Ninh province, instead of catching fish with mines and chemical substances, local residents can develop recreational fishing services and develop the careers friendly to the sea environment.
Developing marine ecotourism, breeding ornamental fish at coral reefs and developing recreational fisheries in MPA is considered a kind of “blue development”, not “green development.”
The spread effects
According to Hoi, if the conservation work can be done well, just after three or five years, the resources in MPA would recover and then spread to neighboring areas, which is called the spread effects.
As such, the MPAs would help disperse aquatic breeders, the larvae, eggs, small fish, and provide nutrients for the marine species in and around marine protected areas. This explains why if successfully protecting coral reef ecosystems, some 3000 species which like “coral houses” would come to reside. If MPA can be managed well, the fisheries would be able to develop in a sustainable way.
The Nha Trang Bay MPA is now an attractive tourism point of Vietnam. However, according to Truong Kinh, Director of the MPA management board, ecotourism activities still cannot be carried out here. In 2008, the board of management once intended to organize community ecotours in Bich Dam on Hon Tre island of Nha Trang Bay. However, the project was delayed because it did not get the support from management agencies.
vietnamnet
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