The southernmost province of Ca Mau is facing a serious depression due to underground water exploitation and deforestation.

 A landslide case in Ca Mau 

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in cooperation with the Norwegian Institute of Technology has been conducting a study on the land depression problem in Ca Mau Peninsula.

According to the research, between 1998 and 2013 land there has been sinking at a rate of 30 - 80 cm per year. This number is expected to increase to 90-150 cm per year in the next 15 years, climbing as high as 120-210 cm per year within 50 years.

Dr. Kjell Karlsrud, from NGI, attributed underground water exploitation to the situation, a problem seen in not only in Ca Mau but across the south west.

People in Ca Mau Province use, on average, more water than other regions of the country. "At the current rate, in a few decades the region will sink lower than sea level," he warned.

Some scientists have said the long-lasting depression could result in a natural disasters for Ca Mau Province. "To find another water source in Ca Mau to replace the underground sources will be difficult. Creating a filtration system would be the best option, but this would be costly," said Dr. Kjell Karlsrud said.

Dr.  Nguyen Truong Tien, Chairman of the Vietnam Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, suggested technological solutions, such as using rain water to replace the water that has been depleted from the underground aquifers.

Tien added that in HCM City, the rate of land depression is about 10-15mm per year.