1 Vietnam The Impact of Economic Reforms on the Environment Natural Resources Base Vietnam is located on the south CHINA

SEA COAST in Southeast Asia, with a total coastal length of 3,260 Kilimeters and thousands of islands, and shares its border is China, Laos, and Cambodia. Its land territory covers diverse geomorphological, hydrological and Climatic conditions. Average climate in Vietnam can be classified as tropical hot, and wet monsoon type with severe seasonal cycle in the northern cycle and relatively hot all year round in the south. The average amount of annual rainfall is between 1,500 and 2,500 millimeters (mm) ,while the average annualhumandity is 80-85%. Only 7 millions hectures (ha) of the total land area of 332,000 squremetres (m2) is the area of plains while the rest as mountains,hills, and plateau. The 1997 STATISTICS from the general Departmant of land administration pointed out that the proportion of cultivated land to total land area was 25%, forest 34.8%, land for specialized use 4%, and uncultivated land 34%. Most of the uncultivated land areascomprise bare hills, denuded land, steep slope land (63.6% of those landhave the steepness of over 25 degree celsius) ,arid area, infertile land, and land with imbalanced nutrients. However, the proportion of both the land for specialized use and cultivated areashave risen gradually during the past years. As regards water resources, the surface water resources and plentiful, with total annual volume of 880 billian cubic metres (m3) ,owing to heavy rainfull and a dense-streams system. However droughts in the provinces of northern midland, central land, and in Tay Ngwyen Platean are constant. Organic water pollution is also necent serios problem in some river owing to the discharge of untreated industrial and urban waste water in to the waterways. The potential reserve of ground water in Vietnam has been estimated to reach 48 billion m3 is exploited every year. Morever, the monitoring report of the Geological Department in 1997 stated that the reserved of 38 mineral water resources were about 39,406 m3/day. Forest in Vietnam is tropical moist, in which diverge varieties and number of species of flora and fauna can be found. However, the forest area has sufferd severe degraduation decreasing from 43% to 33% in 1976 and only 27% by 1990 owing to the impact of war and fomer socio-economic development strategy having inadequate concern for environmental protection. However, the 327 afforestation programs to its people since 1992, and the following afforestation programs, have helped increased the forest coverage gradually. The forest coverage reached 28.8%in the early 1999 and 39.7% in 2005. (FAO 2005, Mongabay 2006) Q1 : What is Vietnam located?
Apaporn Boonrawd

2 Vietnam A1 : the south CHINA SEA COAST in Southeast Asia Q2 : How many proportion of cultivated total land area? A2 : 25%

(Miss Apaporn Boonrawd) 6/150 1 2 6/150 Moo 1 Buathongkaeha Village Soi 2, Sainoi Road, 11110 Bangbuathong District, Nonthaburi Province 11110

Apaporn Boonrawd