Vietnam is often thought of as a war-revenged jungle. Though the Vietnam War, or the American War as it is called by the Vietnamese, is a large part of Vietnamese history, the country has much more to offer than war stories. It is a country rich in natural resources, one of the main being seafood. Vietnam, as well as many other South East Asian countries, depends on seafood to be the largest contributor of protein to their diets. However, the rich biodiversity of the coastal region is constantly being threatened by the deforestation of mangroves. Mangrove forests worldwide provide a breeding ground for a wide variety of marine life. However, much of the wetland formerly covered by mangrove forests has been deforested and replaced by shrimp farms and rice paddies. In her book, Mangroves of Vietnam, author Phan Nguyen Hong explains that:

Exploitation of tree resources, conversion of mangrove areas to shrimp and mud crab ponds, agricultural use, salt pans and human settlements, as well as environmental impacts of coal exploitation and coastal water pollution due to oil spills, have contributed to the steady decline and degradation of the once rich mangroves.

Though shrimp is an integral part to the culture and survival of Vietnam, the destruction of mangrove forests does not bode well for any marine species of the coastal region. Mangrove forests are equally, if not more integral to the survival of the biodiversity of the coastal zone.

Not only do the forests provide nutrients and a home for many marine organisms, they multitask by forming a structural barrier between the open ocean wave energy and the vulnerable coastline. The coast and all the residents within range of coastal storms are threatened by the increasingly frequent and turbulent storms. Preserving and restoring the mangrove forests of Vietnam is the most sustainable and economical way to maintain the coastal integrity of Vietnam. Though some management and mitigation plans are in action, a more active approach must be adopted to prevent the loss of human lives as well as the unique Vietnamese wetland biodiversity.

mangrove photo via shutterstock.com