Human activities and coastal erosion on the Kien Giang coast, Vietnam

By 2009, the Kien Giang coast, Vietnam, had experienced significant coastal erosion and mangrove degradation. Recent mitigation strategies, developed through policies, plans and mangrove planting programs have not been successful, in part because the causes of coastal erosion were not adequately identified. This paper investigates the relationship between human activities and coastal erosion in Kien Giang province. This study used mixed methods to understand the causes of coastal erosion with an emphasis on human activities. In this investigation, local communities were involved as co-investigators to explore the causes of coastal erosion in Kien Giang province. While natural factors (adverse effects of climate change and sea level rise) have been widely reported as main causes of coastal erosion, human activities initially were not recognised by local communities as significant contributors to coastal erosion and mangrove degradation. Human activities such as poor aquaculture pond construction, poor construction of new and upgraded sections of the sea dyke system, mangrove afforestation using only a single species, mangrove cutting for commercial and domestic uses, and construction of local boating channels, and the interaction of anthropogenic activities and physical processes are significant contributors to erosion. The study resulted in the awareness of the impact of community activities on the coast being improved. Knowledge gaps and necessary policy changes are identified