Shrimp have been dieing in masses in many localities in the Mekong Delta, due to the seriously polluted environment. Scientists have warned that the Mekong Delta provinces may witness the failure of crop this year, while seafood processing workshops may be thirst for materials.
Local departments for agriculture and rural development have reported that shrimp have been dying in masses right at the beginning of the shrimp crop.
Nguyen Van Khoi, Deputy Director of the Soc Trang Department for Agriculture and Rural Development, said that farmers in the province have cultured white leg shrimp on 1200 hectares of ponds, while shrimp death has been seen on 500 hectares. For black tiger shrimp culture, 30 percent of total area, or 3,000 hectares has suffered.
“The damages of this year’s shrimp crop may be as serious as in 2011,” Khoi said.
In Tra Vinh province, 400 million shrimp breeders have been bred on the area of 6000 hectares. Meanwhile, shrimps have been dead in masses on 600 hectares, due to the epidemics.
The same thing is occurring in Ca Mau province. Meanwhile, epidemics have brought damages to 20 percent of the total areas. Especially, the death percentage is up to 50 percent in some localities, including Phu Tan, Dam Doi.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) has warned that more shrimp would die in the upcoming months when the official industrial crops begin, because the water resources are getting seriously polluted with high pesticide residues.
