Journal of Marine Science: Research & Development
Open Access

Abstract

Most of the dynamic coastline of Soc Trang Province in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam is protected from erosion, storms and flooding by a narrow belt of mangroves. However, development and the unsustainable use of natural resources in the coastal zone are threatening the protection function of this forest belt. This is exacerbated by the impacts of climate change, particularly the increased intensity and frequency of storms and floods, and by rising sea levels. In sites where severe erosion has destroyed the mangrove belt, coastal protection and climate change adaptation through mangrove rehabilitation is only possible after the wave energy has been reduced by physical barriers. Different arrangements, placements and designs of erosion protection measures were investigated using numerical modelling which simulates hydrodynamics and shoreline development and physical modelling. Breakwaters made out of two parallel rows of bamboo filled with brushwood bundles yielded the best results. Bamboo breakwaters have additional advantages due to the strength, availability of the material and low costs. T-shaped bamboo fences which connect existing headlands were tested in one area of the coast of Soc Trang. In addition, a breakwater was built in such a way that downdrift erosion can be avoided as far as possible. A comprehensive monitoring programme was established and results confirm the effectiveness of bamboo breakwaters for erosion protection and sedimentation. A detailed documentation of the construction and the monitoring programme provides the basis for the expansion of erosion protection and mangrove rehabilitation in erosion sites in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam.

Biography

Thorsten Albers is an expert in River and Coastal Engineering. He studied Civil and Environmental Engineering at Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) and received the academic degree of Doctor of Engineering (Dr.-Ing.) in the field of Coastal Engineering. Since 2011 Albers has been working for the Engineering Company von Lieberman in Hamburg. Albers presented his research results in numerous international conferences and published more than 20 international papers. He has supervised more than 30 diploma and master theses and was in charge of several courses at TUHH. Klaus Schmitt is Chief Technical Advisor of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) project ?Management of Natural Resources in the Coastal Zone of Soc Trang Province, Vietnam?. He holds a Ph.D. in vegetation ecology and an M.Sc. in forestry. He has been working for more than 27 years in research and development cooperation projects for IUCN, WWF, World Bank and GIZ in Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Cambodia and Vietnam. The focus of his work has been on integrated natural resource management, nature conservation, protected area planning and management, biodiversity conservation, coastal management and climate change adaptation. San Cong Dinh is the deputy director of the Center for River Training and Natural Disaster Mitigation of the Southern Institute of Water Resources Research (SIWRR), Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. He got a Master of Engineering from the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand in 2000 and finished his Ph.D. at SIWRR in 2007. Since 2001, he published 6 papers in international workshop proceedings, and one book and 34 papers published in Vietnamese journals. The focus of his publications is on erosion, sedimentation and river and shore protection in the Lower Mekong River Basin.