Environmental and Social Impacts of Shrimp farming in Tam Giang lagoon, Vietnam-Local perception

Environmental and Social Impacts of Shrimp farming in Tam Giang lagoon, Vietnam-Local perception

LOCAL PERSPECTIVES ON THE ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL IMPACTS OF SHRIMP FARMING IN

TAM GIANG LAGOON, VIETNAM

TUONG PHI LAI

A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree of Master of Science

(Management of Natural Resources and Sustainable Agriculture)

Submitted to:

Norwegian University of Life Sciences

Department of International Environment and Development Studies June, 2005

The Department of International Environment and Development Studies, Noragric, is the international gateway for the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (UMB) Eight departments, associated research institutions and the Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine in Oslo Established in 1986, Noragric’s contribution to international development lies in the interface between research, education (Bachelor, Master and PhD programmes) and assignments

The Noragric Master theses are the final theses submitted by students in order to fulfil the requirements under the Noragric Master programme “Management of Natural Resources and Sustainable Agriculture” (MNRSA), “Development Studies” and other Master programmes

The findings in this thesis do not necessarily reflect the views of Noragric Extracts from this publication may only be reproduced after prior consultation with the author and on condition that the source is indicated For rights of reproduction or translation contact Noragric

© Tuong Phi Lai, June 2005 E-mail: tuongphilai@yahoo.com Noragric

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Formatted: French (France)

Formatted: English (U.S.)

DECLARATION

I, Tuong Phi Lai, do hereby declare to the Senate of the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, that this dissertation is entirely the product of my own original research work, unless where it is acknowledged, and that it has not been submitted to any other University or academic institution for award of any degree

Acknowledgements

I am thankful for Dr Nguyen Viet Nam and Msc Tran Van Nhuong - who paved the way for me to attain a NORAD scholarship by giving information and encouragement I also would like to express my gratitude to Prof Ian Bryceson, my main supervisor for his patience in correction of my English and straightforwardness in guidance for completion of this study My hearty thanks are also given to my local supervisor Dr Le Thanh Luu for his valuable guidance and administrative support during my fieldwork Special thanks NORAD for awarding me the scholarship provided an opportunity to improve my knowledge Many gratitude are given to to all Noragric staff for their academic presentations and hosting me in Norway

I am thankful to Mr Nguyen Luong Hien, Mr Nguyen Quang Vinh Binh, Ms Vo Tuyet Hong, Mr Tran Xuan Binh and Ms Lam Thi Thu Suu for providing me valuable information and academic knowledge for carrying out the fieldwork in the study area Personally, I heartily would like to express many thanks to Mr Phan Van Xuan, Mr Chau Ngoc Phi and Mr Le The Nhan who worked so hard with me in field and helped me a lot in primary collecting data

Additionally, I would like to thank all the people as to whom I can not name all here: Ngo Trung Nhat Quang, Pham Quang Anh Khoi, Phan Thanh Anh Dung and all participants from three communes for their valuable assistance and patience during the field survey Many thanks are given to Nguyen Dac Ve, Lai Duy Phuong, Lai Thi Hoa, Ho Cong Huong, Nguyen Van Khanh, Van Thi Thu Vinh, Tran Thi Nguyet Minh, Nguyen Van Tuan, and Dinh Hung for their assistance in data collection; many thanks also given to Mai Van Tai, Shagufta Jeelani and Ngo Thi Thom for their assistance in correcting my languages and academic comments in this thesis

I also would like to thank the Diversity Enhancement Fund (DEF) for a partial financial support during my student’s life in Norway Special thanks are given to Ms Nguyen Thi Thanh Binh and other staff in Centre for Educational Exchange in Vietnam (CEEVN)

Last but not the least, my hearty thanks to my parents and my friends and those who always provided me encouragement and who contributed in various ways towards the accomplishment of this study

Abstract

Shrimp aquaculture is one of the major economic activities in coastal areas of Vietnam However, the relation between shrimp aquaculture and coastal environmental and social issues are not well documented in the Tam Giang lagoon This thesis focused on the environmental and social implications of shrimp aquaculture in three coastal shrimp farming communes: Phu An, Phu Da and Vinh Ha in Phu Vang district The links between the impacts of shrimp farming and policies, institutions and farming practices were investigated Attention was paid to both negative and positive impacts of shrimp farming Local people's perceptions of these factors were investigated using a participatory approach We found that people perceived that waste discharges, fishery reduction, habitat destruction and salinisation of soil to be the foremost environmental impacts of shrimp farming Meanwhile, conflicts among shrimp farmers, traders, fishers and rice-farmers are important social impacts In addition, debt burden, migration of women and conflicts of interests among resource users and sectors and local government were also considered to be critical issues However, shrimp farming also significantly contributes to income generation, employment creation and livelihood diversification in coastal poor communities The sector contributed to changing the livelihoods of local people from subsistence and small-commodity production into commercial production, that in the long run are important for local communities in the context of trade liberalization and globalisation The environmental and social impacts of shrimp farming are strongly linked to economic reforms, aquaculture promotion policies and the management of local government and local farming practices We highlighted the need to internalise the externalities of shrimp farming sector We recommend the introduction of environmentally friendly aquaculture within the framework of community-based and integrated coastal area management We also recommend the necessity of adjustment of institutional frameworks to enhance environmental protection and improve the feasibility of aquaculture planning and building capacity for local authorities and lagoon resource users

List of Abbreviations and Acronyms

CRES Centre for Natural Resources and Environmental Studies CSSH Centre for Social Sciences and Humanities

DFID Department for International Development DOFI Provincial Department of Fisheries

DOSTE Provincial Department of Science, Technology and Environment

EJF Environmental Justice Foundation

FAO Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations

MOFI Ministry of Fisheries of Vietnam

MOSTE Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment MPI Ministry of Planning and Investment

NACA Network of Aquaculture Centres in Asia-Pacific NEA National Environment Agency

NORAD Norwegian Agency for Development Co-operation PCC People Committee of Commune

PCD People Committee of District PCP People Committee of Province

RAMSAR The convention of wet land resources reservation RIA Research Institute for Aquaculture

RIMF Research Institute for Marine Fisheries RRA Rapid Rural Appraisals

SLA/F Sustainable Livelihood Approach/Framework SRV Socialist Republic of Vietnam

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgements Abstract

List of Abbreviations and Acronyms Table of Contents

List of Tables List of Figures

2.3 Data collection techniques 16

2.3.1 Secondary data collection 16

2.3.2 Primary data collection 17

2.3.3 Standard survey 18

2.4 Analytical framework 21

2.5 Data processing and analysis 22

2.6 Limitations of the study 22

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF SHRIMP FARMING 23

3.10 Salinisation of agriculture land 40

SOCIAL IMPACTS OF SHRIMP FARMING 43

4.1 Income generation 43

4.2 Employment 44

4.3 Shifting of livelihoods 46

4.4 Changes in living conditions 49

4.5 The risks in shrimp business 51

4.6 Debt issues 55

4.7 Gender issues 58

4.8 Conflicts among resource users 59

4.9 Conflicts among sectors and policies 66

CONCLUSIONS 71

REFERENCES 74

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1 Aquaculture production of Penaeus monodon by countries (1980-2002) 2

Figure 2 Map research site: Phu Vang district in Tam Giang-Cau Hai lagoon, Vietnam 11 Figure 3 Analytical framework for environmental and social impacts of shrimp farming 21 Figure 4 Extensive net-enclosure (left) and intensive shrimp aquaculture (right) in Tam Giang lagoon 25 Figure 5 Map of nursery sites in and the replacement of those sites by shrimp farming Tam Giang-Cau Hai lagoon system 35 Figure 6 Net enclosure aquaculture (left) and fishing boats (right) in Tam Giang lagoon 40 Figure 7 Numbers of shrimp farmers and shrimp traders in three communes in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon 45 Figure 8 Original livelihoods of present shrimp farmers in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon 48 Figure 9 Proportion of farm affected by disease in Phu Vang district and Tam Giang lagoon 52

Figure 10 Perceived levels of risk in relation to various livelihoods 54 Figure 11 Shrimp farming, transportation and fishing activities in Tam Giang lagoon 62

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1 Overview of Potential Environmental Impacts of Shrimp Pond Construction and Operation (reproduced from Clay, 1996 cited in Tobey et al., 1998) 5 Table 2 Overview of Potential Social and Economic Impacts of Shrimp Pond Construction and Operation (reproduced from Clay, 1996 cited in Tobey et al., 1998) 6 Table 3 Development trend of shrimp farming in Vietnam: area, production and yield 7 Table 4 Baseline socio-economic data in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon 12 Table 5 Gross Domestic Production of economic activities in coastal area and Tam Giang lagoon (Unit: million VND) 13 Table 6 Baseline data of shrimp aquaculture in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon 13 Table 7 General criteria for selection of study sites in Tam Giang lagoon, Thua Thien Hue province 14 Table 8 Specific criteria for study site selection in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon 15 Table 9 Number of respondents in different groups under impacts of shrimp farming in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon (N=294 respondents) 18 Table 10 Criteria for characterizing farming system in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon 19

Deleted: 51

Deleted: 61

Table 13 Usage of pellets and raw-fish or home-made feed in shrimp farms in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon (N=100 respondents) 26 Table 14 Chemicals and drugs use in shrimp farming in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon 28 Table 15 Estimations of solids waste discharged from shrimp farming 29 Table 16 Local perception about effects of shrimp farming waste on the lagoon water quality (N=294 respondents) 30 Table 17 Proportion of shrimp farms that encountered disease and their responses in Phu Vang district in 2004 (N=294 respondents) 33 Table 18 Local perceptions about the effects of shrimp farming on nursery and breeding ground in Tam Giang lagoon (N=294 respondents) 35 Table 19 Local perspectives on the effect of shrimp farming on the sea-grass condition in Tam Giang lagoon (N=294 rspondents) 37 Table 20 Local perspectives on the effect of shrimp farming expansion on the reduction of fishery production in the lagoon (N=294 respondents) 38 Table 21 Factors effecting lagoon fishery resource reduction in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon 39 Table 22 Local perspectives concerning the effect of shrimp farming on salinisation of agriculture land in Tam Giang lagoon (N=294 respondents) 41 Table 23 Various income sources of local people in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon (N=294 respondents) 43 Table 24 Numbers of shrimp households and jobs related to shrimp farming in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon 44 Table 25 Numbers of jobs in different shrimp farming systems in Tam Giang area (N=100 respondents) 46 Table 26 Local people’s identification of rich and poor in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon 47 Table 27 Original livelihoods of present shrimp farmers in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon (N=100 respondents) 47 Table 28 Background of shrimp farmers in relation to different farming systems in Tam Giang lagoon (N= 100 respondents) 48 Table 29 Local perspectives on the impacts of shrimp farming on the living condition of local community (N=294 respondents) 50 Table 30 Proportion of diseased farms in the three communes in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon during 2004 52 Table 31 Proportion of shrimp farm failures due to disease outbreaks in different farming systems in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon in 2004 53 Table 32 Local people's perspective on the risk level of different livelihood options in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang area 53 Table 33 Debt situation of different livelihood groups in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang area (N=294 respondents) 56 Table 34 Debt situation of shrimp farmers in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon (N=100 farms) 57

Table 35 Local perception of the conflicts among resource users in Tam Giang lagoon60 Deleted: 59

INTRODUCTION

The shrimp aquaculture industry is looked upon as a highly profitable business in several developing countries The sector attracts a range of investors including the state, private enterprises and external assistance in many of these nations During the last two decades, shrimp aquaculture has become a major sector of aquaculture in terms of space occupied and market values There has been a rapid expansion of shrimp aquaculture in many parts of the tropical world since 1980s (Gräslund & Bengtsson, 2001) In 1975, shrimp aquaculture contributed to 2.5% of total shrimp production, which gradually increased to around 30% of total shrimp supply in the 1990s (Rönnbäck, 2002) Global production of farm shrimp increased from 71,000 tons in 1980 to 1,271,000 tons in 2001, in which 80% production from Asia (FAO, 2004) In the South East Asia, the production of cultured crustaceans increased by over 500% between 1981 and 1995 (FAO 1997a cited by Gräslund & Bengtsson, 2001) By 1998, the total shrimp aquaculture in the region was 580,000 tones, i.e slightly more than the quantity of shrimp caught in the wild (Gräslund & Bengtsson, 2001) Today shrimp makes up only 3-4% of global aquaculture production by weight, but almost 15% by value (FAO 1999a cited by Rönnbäck, 2002)

The black tiger shrimp, Penaeus monodon, accounts for more than fifty percent of the

total shrimp aquaculture output (Rosenberry, 1999 cited by Rönnbäck, 2002) It is speculated that the market for shrimp will continue to grow and the demand for shrimp is likely to remain high and their farming will play a more important role in the future compared to capture by trawling (World Bank, 1998)

In Thailand, which is the largest producer of farmed shrimp in the world, the shrimp industry as a whole employs more than 150,000 people of which some 97,000 are directly involved in shrimp farming It is estimated that 500,000 households are connected in some ways in shrimp farming and that for every 1 Thai Baht of shrimp produced there are ∼ 3.5 Thai Baht in associated industries (Kongkeo, 1994; World Bank 1995 cited by ODA, 1996) There were many examples of how shrimp farming contributes to improve

the majority of intensive shrimp farmers in Thailand were previously either poor fishermen or rice farmers could be considered evidence (Edward, 2000)

Vietnam provides another example where shrimp are now produced by relatively poor households and production of often integrated as rice-shrimp and mangrove-shrimp aquaculture in the Mekong Delta (Edward, 2000) In addition there are a large number of poor people employed in shrimp farming as labour or small-scale traders indicating the economic opportunities offered by the sector (Nhuong et al., 2003) It is clear that shrimp farming is one of few options for economic development in poor coastal areas with saline soils It has potential for enhancing small holders income, or to provide relatively well-paid employment in comparison with other feasible alternatives in poor coastal areas (World Bank, 1998)

T hailan dI n don esiaI n diaViet n amM alaysiaSr i Lan kaM adagascarChin a T aiwanot her s

(Source: FAO FishStat (2005), prepared by Ian Bryceson)

Figure 1 Aquaculture production of Penaeus monodon by countries (1980-2002)

There is no doubt that shrimp aquaculture is a very important economic factor in many countries However, many other environmental and social issues also need to be highlighted Negative impacts included habitat degradation, pollution by nutrients and organic wastes from effluents and wastes, chemicals and medicinal residues to water and soil, salinisation of agricultural land and introductions of non-native species (World Bank, 1998)

Hopkins et al (1995) claimed that the main environmental concerns of shrimp farming have been the destruction of mangroves and other wetlands for the construction of shrimp ponds More than 50% of the world’s mangroves have been removed, and the establishment of shrimp ponds has been a major cause behind this loss in many countries (Primavera, 1998; Rönnbäck, 2002) NACA reports that 20-50% of all current mangroves deforestation is due to shrimp farming In areas of Ecuador and Thailand, large areas of mangroves have been destroyed for shrimp ponds (World Bank, 1998)

There have been several studies focused on the impacts of shrimp farming on the salinisation of the soil and contamination of ground water since it encroaches on agriculture and the use of freshwater for farming It is argued that for each metric ton of shrimp produced, intensive farms require 50-60 million of litres of water (Gujja & Finger Stitch, 1995) Seepage through pond bottoms, discharge of pond wastes into freshwater and seepage from pond sediments can contaminate freshwater with salt (Boy, 1997), canals and rice paddies (Funge-Smith & Steward, 1996) Shrimp farming can also create eutrophication, with increased risk of algal blooms, oxygen depletion and toxic chemical discharge such as sulphide and ammonia (Clay, 1996; Dieberg & Kiatimisimkul, 1996, Lin, 1995; Flaherty et al., 1995, Rönnbäck, 2002) Other impacts are linked to depletion of wild fish population (Primavera, 1998; Kautsky et al., 2000a) and human health in term of misuses of drugs and chemicals (Gräslund & Bengtsson, 2001) The worldwide transfers and introduction of preferred culture species might conflict with endemic fauna, causing biological pollution of native stock and introduction of diseases and parasites to

Regarding social impacts, critics claim that intensive farms are commonly associated with the better-off households Shrimp exports bring substantial foreign exchange to developing countries and contribute to national short-term economic growth It also improves income for some producers and labourers (Barraclough & Finger-Stich, 1996) However the long-term effect of the sector, particularly on the poorest group in coastal area, seems to be neglected by those who support the industry (Barraclough & Finger-Stich, 1996) The subsidies and institutional support goes to the companies and the rich meanwhile it is putting at risk the livelihood and food security of many coastal populations After disease outbreak, most of the shrimp farm areas become polluted and abandoned with the mode of “rape and run” production In Taiwan production collapsed over three consecutive years (80,000 tons in 1988 to 9,000 tons in 1990) Similar experiences in the Gulf of Thailand caused losses estimated at about 40,000 ha of shrimp farm were abandoned due to consistent crop failures; they remain unused today (ODA, 1996) These areas have inhibited the spontaneous regeneration of vegetation and their use for agriculture, forestry and other aquaculture or related fishing activities (Barraclough & Finger-Stich, 1996)

It was argued that the shrimp aquaculture has also brought about social displacement and marginalisation of fishers and small-scale farmers It has also caused reduction of food production for local people on quality land used for other crops; the depletion of drinking water and loss in other environmental services have also been criticized (Barraclough & Finger-Stich, 1996; Rönnbäck, 2002)

Recently shrimp farming has resulted in serious human rights violations and social conflicts in rural areas, particularly in Bangladesh and India, where there were over 100 Bangladeshi villagers killed in conflicts over land acquisition by the shrimp industry (Ahmed, 1997) consequently, Bangladeshi women and children were identified as the most affected victims of the disputed situation (EFJ, 2002 and Fatima, 2004)

Clay (1996 cited in CRC, 1998) has summarised major environmental and economic impacts of shrimp farming in Latin America Many of these same impacts were observed in our study in Tam Giang lagoon, Vietnam

socio-Table 1 Overview of Potential Environmental Impacts of Shrimp Pond Construction and Operation (reproduced from Clay, 1996 cited in Tobey et al., 1998)

Table 2 Overview of Potential Social and Economic Impacts of Shrimp Pond Construction and Operation (reproduced from Clay, 1996 cited in Tobey et al., 1998)

In Vietnam, shrimp farming plays an important economic role; it holds third position in contributing to the export earnings of foreign exchange and it is considered to be one of the most significant and attractive livelihoods to farmers in coastal areas (Nhuong et al., 2002) The sector has been initiated since the 1980’s and it is seen as export-oriented and fuelled by the government support, private sector and external assistance There are different shrimp farming systems found in country but extensive and improved extensive systems are dominating the sector (MOFI, 1999; Nhuong et al., 2003)

Table 3 Development trend of shrimp farming in Vietnam: area, production and yield

(tons)

Yield (Kg/ha)

(Source: Nhuong et al., 2003)

Development of shrimp farming in Vietnam has recently experienced a trend of increasing intensification together with expansion of area In 1999 the total shrimp area was about 255,000 ha and increased up to 530,000 ha in 2002, more than double The MOFI has now established the new target of 700,000 ha of shrimp farming in 2005

Together with the rapid development of shrimp farming, there are also several negative social and environmental problems, and recently trading competitive and anti-dumping issues One of the most serious environmental problems is the pressure of expanding shrimp farming on the coastal environmental resources, particularly mangrove forests Data shows that from 1943 to 2000, there was a reduction of about 290,000 hectares of mangroves in Vietnam: the reduction of forest coverage in this period result from aquaculture development, particularly in the Mekong delta (EJF, 2003; Wade H, 2002; Nhuong et al., 2002) The majority of coastal farming areas after 2000 resulted from transferring low productivity rice fields, while the minority of them originated from mangrove forest (MOFI, 2001) The disadvantages of mangrove forest destruction have been shown clearly such as the reduction of biodiversity, coastal erosion, and salinisation of agricultural land, which threatens the sustainable development of shrimp farming (Hong, 1999) Additionally, evidence shows the signals of environmental pollution appeared in many zones of intensive farming as well as shortage of freshwater and

directly to the environment causes harm and increases the risk of spreading epidemic diseases which damages the interests of shrimp farmers themselves Since 1994-1995, epidemics spread widely in southern provinces, influencing 84,858 hectares of shrimp area and caused a loss of VND 249 billion (MOFI, 1996) In 2001 and 2002, shrimp diseases continued to threaten and cause great damages to farmers in the Mekong delta (Nhuong et al., 2002)

Although shrimp culture has been practiced for more than 15 years in Vietnam, an institutional framework for environmental management of shrimp farming area first came into effect in 2002 and applied to concentrated shrimp farming areas only However, there were no guidelines for the preparation of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports of shrimp farms until 2004 although it was legally required since 1998 In addition, most of recent EIA reports focus on the impacts of intensive farming project levels only (less than 200 hectares), and there are few documents addressing the negative impacts of shrimp farming at the communal, district and provincial levels Consequently, the environmental impacts and wider externalities are usually overlooked in the Master Plan of Development and Master Plan of Aquaculture (Hoi & Dung, 2004)

In Vietnam, the negative impacts of shrimp farming have been carefully studied at national level and intensive project level However, most previous studies focused on identifying the types of impacts rather than understanding the causes of those impacts Moreover it seems that much attention was paid to the impacts of shrimp aquaculture on mangrove reduction and water pollution, but there are few documents written about the environmental and social impacts of encroachment of shrimp ponds into lagoons despite the fact that these are important ecosystems in coastal areas

The Tam Giang-Cau Hai lagoon system is well known in Vietnam and is one of the largest coastal lagoons in South-East Asia The lagoon plays an important role, not only for provincial socio-economic development, but also for national wetland programs It is known that the lagoons provide important spawning, feeding and nursery grounds for fish and shellfish, which are the foundation for fishery and aquaculture More importantly, the

lagoon is important to larger numbers of migratory waterfowl and shorebirds, which have attracted the attention of scientists preparing proposals for RAMSAR site (DOSTE, 2004) The lagoons are thought to provide coastal protection to prevent saltwater intrusion inland and to regulate the microclimate of densely inhabited and intensively cultivated coastal areas The lagoons also facilitate boat transport between towns and villages along their shores, and provide sheltered ports for ocean-going vessels PCP, (1998) considered this area as a valuable resource with important ecological functions that should be managed, conserved and developed in sustainable way

Previously, several studies have been carried out in the Tam Giang related to water monitoring, community based natural resource management, environmental management in coastal aquaculture However, despite the growing literature on the description of lagoon environment and its socio-economic characteristics, the relationships between human activities and the lagoon environment and poverty are still poorly understood, particularly the impacts of shrimp farming on the lagoon environment and on local livelihoods

It seems that although local people and researchers are aware of the problems, research on this topic has remained limited and does not provide information to local and central policy-makers for making appropriate plans and policies to achieve sustainable development of aquaculture and lagoon management

This study been conducted in Phu Vang district, a central area of the Tam Giang lagoon, in collaboration with ongoing projects: one conducting by the Research Institute of Aquaculture No 1 (RIA No 1), a government agency, the other practiced by the Centre for Social Sciences and Humanities (CSSH), a semi non-government organization (NGO): both projects were in cooperation with the Department of Fisheries (DOFI) The study attempts to provide a balanced analysis of both the positive and the negative impacts of shrimp farming on the environment and local livelihoods We attempt to

1.1 Objectives of the study

1 To study local people's perceptions about the impacts of shrimp farming on the Tam Giang lagoon environment with emphasis on the major positive and negative aspects

2 To study perceptions about the impacts of shrimp farming on livelihoods of local people in the lagoon community with emphasis on the major positive and negative aspects

3 To discuss the role of policy, institutions and farming practices in relation to the negative impacts of shrimp farming

MATERIALS AND METHODS 2.1 Study area

The lagoon of Tam Giang-Cau Hai is located at16º17’ - 16º40’N and 107º25’ - 107 º 57’ E along five districts of Thua Thien Hue in the central province of Vietnam It comprises a series of coastal lagoons, covering 22.000 ha Tam Giang – Cau Hai is one of the largest lagoons in Southeast-Asia and is separated from the open sea by a large sand dune system Even though the lagoons occupies about 4.5% of total area of Thue-Thien Hue, it provides livelihood for 350.000 inhabitants, about 32% of the total population of the province (DOFI, 2002)

(Prepared by: Nguyen Van Khanh, 2004)

Figure 2 Map research site: Phu Vang district in Tam Giang-Cau Hai lagoon, Vietnam

the average precipitation is 2744 mm per year The rainy season lasts from September to April, and the highest rainfall is usually in October On average, about six floods occur and up to four storms visit Thua-Thien Hue annually, mostly occurring in September and October The hydrographical characteristics of Tam Giang lagoon are complex It was contains fresh, brackish and marine waters and the tidal regime is semi-diurnal The lagoon receives inflows from five rivers and exchanges water with the ocean through the Thuan An and Tu Hien river mouths These characteristics influence the biodiversity of fauna and flora of the Tam Giang lagoon (PCP, 1998)

Phu Vang is one of the five coastal districts in the central of Tam Giang lagoon with a total area of about 28,000,000 ha and a population of 178.000 inhabitants The district occupies 40 km of coastline and covers around 7,000 ha lagoon water area Major livelihoods derived from resources of the lagoon are fishery, aquaculture and agriculture Recently, ecotourism, fishery processing industry, marine transportation and service have become promising economic activities Under the pressure of growing population and a high poverty rate, people have increasingly exploited the lagoon, thus challenging the sustainability of the lagoon (DOFI, 2004) Table 4 provides an overview of basic geographic and demographic facts in the study area

Table 4 Baseline socio-economic data in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon Phu An Phu Da Vinh Ha Phu Vang Thua Thien Hue Land area

(Source: Statistics of district and province, 2004)

It illustrates that fisheries and aquaculture play an important role in economy of the study area The sectors contributed to 44.4% total GDP of the province and the growth rate of aquaculture development seem to be highest during period of 1996 and 2001

Table 5 Gross Domestic Production of economic activities in coastal area and Tam Giang lagoon (Unit: million VND)

1996 2001 Sector

Table 6 Baseline data of shrimp aquaculture in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon

Shrimp farm area (ha)

Total Production

(ton)

Productivity (ton/ha)

2.2 Site selection

Phu Vang district was selected as the study site as a result of discussions with DOFI, RIA No 1 colleagues and local NGO members after making several field visits including informal interviews with local people in the Tam Giang area

The district is located in the centre of the Tam Giang lagoon, with a history of farm activities For several years, the district has been the principal contributor of farmed shrimp and fishing production in Thua Thien Hue province The lagoon area is confronted with serious environmental problems and conflicts of interest among resource uses such as agriculture, shrimp aquaculture, traditional fisheries, transportation, ecotourism and wetland conservation Phu Vang district is situated 12 km from the city of Hue and the provisional Department of Fisheries Therefore, it facilitated access to official data and assistance from local staff

Table 7 General criteria for selection of study sites in Tam Giang lagoon, Thua Thien Hue province

Environmental Urgent issues of environment related to shrimp farming

Social Conflicts of interests related to shrimp farming

Economic Shrimp farming success and failures resulting in wealth disparity and debt problems

Technical Existence of diversified shrimp farming systems

Among the twenty-seven coastal communes in the district, we collected samples from three communes representing different geographical, socio-economic, environmental and technical aspects Conflicts of interests among various different resource users and economic sectors are major emerging issues in the commune of Phu An Meanwhile, the main problems in the commune of Vinh Ha are the degradation of nursery and breeding

grounds Although effluent discharge is an urgent issue in Phu Da, shrimp farming has been fairly stable in this commune, while in Phu An and Vinh Ha the crops have experienced fluctuations Since 1997, disease outbreaks have been occurring more frequently and caused major losses since 2002 in these communes

Tam Giang lagoon has never been a large natural mangrove area, only about 10 hectares of its total area of 22,000 hectares is covered by mangroves There has therefore been little conversion of mangroves into shrimp farming (DOFI, 2002), hence we have not focused on the impacts of shrimp farming on mangroves in this study

Table 8 Specific criteria for study site selection in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon

Criteria Location

Position Characteristics and major issues

Phu An North of Phu Vang

• Existence of resource use conflicts of interest • Most of farms are in tidal area; domination of net-enclosure aquaculture (traditional extensive system)

• Most shrimp farms had crop failures in 2004 and crops were not stable during the previous four years

Phu Da Middle of Phu Vang

• Many farms situated in the upper tidal area, mainly improved extensive systems and semi-intensive systems

• Most farms succeeded in 2004 and shrimp crops were fairly stable in previous ten years

Vinh Ha South of Phu Vang

• Sea-grass habitat degradation/nursery and breeding ground replacement

• Most farms are in the inter-tidal area, mainly improved extensive systems and semi-intensive systems

• Most farms failed in 2004 and were not stable during the previous four years

2.3 Data collection techniques

A participatory approach was applied in the field survey with the assistance of a number of experienced people from different disciplines including socio-economists, environmentalists and aquaculturists from central and local institutions who have been worked in the area The research team consisted of a staff from RIA No 1, DOFI and CSSH and officers of People's Committee of the District (PCD) and People's Committee of the Commune (PCC)

The fieldwork was implemented from October to December 2004 The research process was divided into three phases: (1) Initial, (2) Operational and (3) Final The initial stage was focused on secondary data collection and individual interviews of the local officers and researchers in organizations where research has been carried out: mainly in national level and provincial level in Ha Noi (capital of Viet Nam) and Hue city The operational stage was carried out in the district and communes with emphasis on Rapid Rural Appraisal (RRA) and Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) techniques involving both local people and authorities The final stage was focused on the household survey using pre-tested questionnaires

2.3.1 Secondary data collection

Secondary data collection was mainly conducted in provincial and national agencies: the

Ministry of Fisheries (MOFI), RIA No 1, Hai phong Institute of Oceanography (HIO), DOFI, Department of Resource and Environment (DOSTE), and Hue Science University (HSU) The secondary data reviewed included relevant including official statistics, annual reports and semi-annual reports that were available in the organizations Institutionally, we collected and analysed the Environmental Law, Land Law and Fishery Law and those by-laws that related to lagoon management The Socio-economic Development Plan, Wetland Programme Strategies, Poverty Reduction Strategies and Fishery & Aquaculture plans and major policies/guidelines associated with those documents were also collected and analysed at multiple levels (national, provincial, and district and commune level) These reviews provided an overview of shrimp aquaculture, lagoon management issues and historical background of problems related to shrimp

farming in national and provincial levels More importantly, the review provided documentary linkages between those policies and institutions to the shrimp farming expansion and their impacts on the environment and local livelihood in the study area

2.3.2 Primary data collection

Primary data was collected based on RRA/PRA techniques and questionnaire survey The informal interviews were conducted in national, provincial, local agencies, local and international NGOs staff whenever we had opportunities to contact However, other techniques were mainly focused on activities carried out at the district and communal levels Primary data collection was initiated with some field visits and we applied pre-test exercises to ensure the relevance of questionnaire, as well as the correct interpretation and appropriateness of the methodologies used The pilot sample was drawn from neighbouring communes facing similar issues Three sets of questionnaires were developed for shrimp farmers, non-shrimp farmers and shrimp traders with emphasis on the stakeholders’ concerns about environmental and socio-economic impacts of shrimp farming; the causes of those impacts and links to institutions (customary and official), policy and farming practices Subsequently, we organized training on RRA and PRA for representatives of different groups related to shrimp farming in the selected communes and the research assistants The trainings provide an overview of the impacts of shrimp farming in the community, and identified key informants for interviewing and respondents for household surveys Selective PRA tools and prepared topics such as key informant interviews, observations and focus group discussions were maximally applied to explore both negative and positive impacts of shrimp aquaculture on target groups (beneficiaries and victims) Strength-Weakness-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT) analysis, seasonal calendars, timelines, and a series of institutional and livelihood analysis tools based on the Sustainable Livelihood Framework (DFID, 1999) and Environmental Impacts Assessment Guidelines (MOFI, 2004) were applied The interviews were practiced in different ways and about various concerns: shrimp farmers, non-shrimp

farmers, old and young, men and women, rich and poor in a flexible ways and an open atmosphere

2.3.3 Standard survey

The pre-prepared questionnaires were used to acquire quantitative data and to make qualitative judgments from households The questionnaires focused on impacts of shrimp aquaculture at the farming level with links to policies, institutions and farming practices In order to specify the differences among various groups in the community, interviewed respondents were divided in to three groups: (i) shrimp farmers, (ii) shrimp traders and (iii) non-shrimp farmers according to the proportion of these groups in the community The households which engaged in seed supply, feed supply, drugs and chemicals supply and as shrimp collectors were all categorized as the shrimp traders; meanwhile farmers and fisher-folk and other groups (handcrafters, carpenters, builders, tailors, school-teachers and others) were classified as non-shrimp farmers Random sampling methods were applied in each category to ensure the representativeness for each category within the communes

Table 9 Number of respondents in different groups under impacts of shrimp farming in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon (N=294 respondents)

The number of traders in shrimp farm feed and seed in the commune was relatively small, therefore we carried out interviews with most of them to achieve adequate data The proportion of traders in Table 3 therefore did not reflect the proportion of these groups within the community Notably, there were many people (around 200-300 households in each commune) collecting shrimps in the communes (gathering and transporting, distributing) but only a small number of them dealt with farmed shrimp alone Therefore we just collected data from eight shrimp collectors who held the largest market share of farmed shrimp within the communes and from five other large-scale traders (feed, seed) outside the communes to generate enough data for comparison and see the broader view In order to differentiate technically between shrimp farming systems, shrimp farmed respondents were categorized into three sub-groups: Type I, Type II and Type III A set of criteria for the categorization of farming systems was agreed upon through the participation of local people (Table 10) Most shrimp farm Type I was collected in Phu An, Type II in Vinh Ha and Type III in Phu Da

Table 10 Criteria for characterizing farming system in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon

Type I

(traditional net-enclosure system)

Net-enclosure, no pond dike, water exchange by tides, low stocking density (<7 ind/m-2), low productivity (<200 kg/ha), no machinery or equipment for water quality monitoring

Type III (semi-intensive and

Deeper pond (> 80 cm depth), Complete water exchange by pumps; high stocking density (> 15 ind/m-2),

Table 11 Numbers of respondents from different shrimp farm systems in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon

2.4 Analytical framework

Figure 3 Analytical framework for environmental and social impacts of shrimp farming

Human, institutional, policy and environmental conditions

Shrimp aquacultural expansion into the lagoon and agricultural fields

Environmental impacts 1 Water pollution 2 Disease outbreak 3 Fishing catch

reduction

4 Sea-grass reduction 5 Nursery bed and

breeding ground replacement 6 Salinisation of

agriculture land

Social impacts 1 Livelihood

diversification 2 Poverty reduction 3 Risk and un-

sustainability • Debt • Conflicts

• Property and income disparities

Natural resources and

ecological processes

People: shrimp farmers, shrimp traders,

non-shrimp farmers

Institutions and policies

2.5 Data processing and analysis

An analytical framework was used to organize and categorize information between respondent groups or stakeholders Farming systems and stakeholders’ viewpoints were a major focus in the analysis with emphasis on the interactions between shrimp farms, lagoon environment and local people's livelihoods We mainly used descriptive statistics, case studies and qualitative information to explore similarities and differences Survey data were processed by descriptive statistics in Excel based upon parameters such as frequency distribution, mean, maximum, minimum and standard deviation At the end of each day, the survey team conducted feedback sessions to process qualitative data promptly and make corrective measures or fills gaps whenever necessary

2.6 Limitations of the study

Due to human, financial and time constraints, the study could not cover all aspects of environmental and social impacts of shrimp farming: there are probably some types of impacts missing in our presentation Additionally, interviewing local people by recalling past events has also some disadvantages because farmers did not have records and their answers might contain mistakes and errors, especially the estimation of the income, cost and return of different economic activities at household level Some enumerators of DOFI lacked experience in interviewing techniques, so they met difficulties when working with respondents and using social research tools such as participatory rural appraisal (PRA) and sustainable livelihood approach (SLA) This problem resulted in some blank or insufficient data in the uncompleted questionnaires that caused some difficulties with data analysis

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF SHRIMP FARMING 3.1 Areal expansion

95% of shrimp farms in Phu An, Phu Da and Vinh Ha were unplanned farms: but after the year 2000 some of them have been allocated with permission by local government after consensus bidding At the time of this study, 90% of shrimp farms were allocated contracted land rights by local government The contract allows them to operate the farm for 1 to 5 years depending on the communes, soil type and quality and farm position The remaining farms owners have the right to operate their farms for 5 to 20 years Our interviews revealed that only some commune officers knew of the Provincial Master Plan for Fisheries and Aquaculture Only a few intensive shrimp farmers had some ideas about the district aquaculture plan Most of shrimp farmers have never seen the map of the aquaculture plan for the commune, except some local officers and their relatives The Master Plan for Fisheries and Aquaculture does not contribute adequately to giving guidance for aquaculture development in the lagoon Most of communes along the lagoon do not have aquaculture plans

Nguyen Nhuong, an intensive shrimp farmer in Phu An commune, said:

“There were no fishery and aquaculture plans here, so why do you (officers) accuse us (shrimp farmers) of illegal expansion, most of us (shrimp farmers) have no idea about provincial master plan of fishery and aquaculture, only some commune officers knew district aquaculture plan, and no one of us have seen the commune plan of aquaculture - what could we do? What kind of plan should we follow? During the last three months, we knew that they (officers) came here to make a plan for fishery in Sam Chuong lagoon (a sub-lagoon in Tam Giang lagoon system) based on the community I was very happy because I wanted to participate in the meeting; however, I have not got any information from local government since I knew that workshop offered most of local government officers only

97% of shrimp farmers have never read the Laws of Environmental Protection (1993), Land law (1988, 1993 and 2003), Law on Water Resources or Law of Fishery (1990) Only few communal and district officers knew these laws Although the new Fishery Law has been promulgated since 2003, there were few officers who knew of this Law and most of shrimp farmers were unfamiliar with it

The policies, institutions and local people's perspectives indicate that the expansion of shrimp farming into the lagoon and agriculture land is a result of national economic reform following by multiple fishery and aquaculture promotion programmes It was initiated by the “Doi moi” renovation reform in 1986, which encouraged privatisation and liberalization of market including liberal foreign investment law The Land Law (1988) facilitated household economies and replaced the cooperative-based economy and shifted responsibility of management of natural resource from village cooperatives into hands of individuals (Le & Rambo, 1999) The Land Law led to rapid transformation of common property wetlands into the private farms: shrimp farms and rice farms Our institutional analysis demonstrates that shrimp farming in Thua Thien Hue has been practised for 12 years without planning The Decision 773-QĐ-TTg (1994) has facilitated wisely using coastal resources by converting lagoon into aquaculture including shrimp farming The policies also supported land titles, finance, infrastructure and finances Due to this, a large number of people gained access to the lagoon for the building of ponds This mass expansion created conflicts in term of ponds' positions among shrimp farmers and between shrimp farmers and fishers The expansion of shrimp farming has increased more dramatically since government approved Decision 224-QĐ-TTg (1999) The new policies strongly supported irrigation systems, intensive shrimp farming projects, hatchery buildings, training, loan provision and market promotion for private, state-seafood-processing companies and private state-hatchery-company It was also strengthen by the Resolution 09-NQ-CP (2000) which allowed farmers to transform coastal saline rice land into aquaculture ponds This conversion has not only led to environmental degradation in the lagoon, but also created the conflicts among shrimp farmers and peasants in term of land use displacement and salinisation

(Prepared by: ICZM project (2000)- left, and Le The Nhan, (2004)-right)

Figure 4 Extensive net-enclosure (left) and intensive shrimp aquaculture (right) in Tam Giang lagoon

It seems that unplanned rapid expansion of shrimp farming and its environmental impacts have resulted from multiple factors, in which institutional framework and policies play crucial role Shrimp farming practices, awareness and trust among various resource users are also important factors

3.2 Water consumption

The level of water consumed and waste discharged into the lagoon among the three farming systems are shown in Table 13 More intensive systems consumed less water but discharged more solid wastes into the lagoon, particularly during pond preparations from December to February (crop 1) and April to May (crop 2) There was about 118,000 m3

of water consumed per hectare per year by farms of Type I, and used water was discharged directly back into the lagoon because this was an open farming system

Table 12 Water consumed by shrimp farming as estimated through interviews

Farming system Water consumed (m3/ha/yr)

Table 13 Usage of pellets and raw-fish or home-made feed in shrimp farms in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon (N=100 respondents)

Using pellets

Using raw-fish or

home-made (%) kg/ha Type I

Nguyen De, an intensive shrimp farmer in Phu An said:

"All Type I shrimp farmers used raw-fish while nobody knows how to use it correctly, even some Type II farmers The majority of farming area in Phu An were Type I and Type II systems

Tran Van Be, a Type II shrimp farmer in Vinh Ha stated:

"We know that using raw-fish and overfeeding might be two major causes of water pollution in ponds These increase waste discharges and pollute lagoon water due to water exchange and pond preparation However, since the majority of shrimp farmers used raw-fish and home-made feed because of cheap price, there was no training course for these topics organized in the commune What can we do? We have asked the extension workers about this issue, but there was no reply, every year they ask me to learn the repeated things about how to design the pond, how to grow shrimp in general, and that it was good to remind me but it was no focus on what I really want to know

Lack of knowledge about using feed, particularly raw-fish along with inappropriate feeding techniques is a major issue related to environmental impact of shrimp farming in Tam Giang lagoon

3.4 Chemicals use

Chemicals were commonly used in Phu Vang district and Tam Giang lagoon, particularly during pond preparation Table 14 shows the proportions of various drugs and chemicals used Around 92% farms were using lime 88% farms applied saponin or chlorine, particularly Type II and Type III farms, whereas only 16% of Type I farms used these

Nguyen Chinh, intensive shrimp farmer in Phu Da said:

"We used lot of drugs and chemicals in shrimp ponds Chemicals and drugs were flooding the local market but nobody among us knows how to use those properly We have to use chemicals and drugs but it is costly, some are dangerous and risky in terms of dosage and timing and even human health, but we had no choice Farmed shrimp was more valuable and expensive than anything else in the commune, we had to rescues them in any way we could - rescuing shrimp is as important as rescuing our livelihoods

However, according to a chemical-seller-Nguyen Phuoc Hang-Phu Thuong town since the year 2002, the management of drugs and chemical sales in Hue has become strict All the chemicals sellers must follow the Decision 01/2002/QÐ-BTS of MOFI that they have to sell products that are not on list of prohibited products guided by Department of Fishery staff He said that before 2002, drugs and chemicals for shrimp farming could be sold freely without any interference

Table 14 Chemicals and drugs use in shrimp farming in Phu Vang district, Tam Giang lagoon

Drugs and chemicals Proportion of farms (%) Remarks

Lime 92 Often use in pond preparation and for buffering pH

To kill red-blooded animals like fish, predators in shrimp ponds

Antibiotics and other

Disease treatment or prevention

3.5 Waste discharge

However, farms of this type discharged only 15 m3 of solids waste per hectare per year into the lagoon By contrast, there was little wastewater discharged from farms of Type II and III during farm operation These systems were initially filled with lagoon water and later added about 5-30% total pond volume They discharged the used water and solid wastes at the end of the crop cycle About 100 m3 of solid waste per hectare is discharged annually from farms of type II and 2000 m3 from farms of Type III However, in case of disease infection in the pond; Type II and Type III farmers discharged waste water with pathogens directly into the lagoon by changing a larger proportion of water volume (30-

50%) to try to rescue the shrimp (see Table 15)

Table 15 Estimations of solids waste discharged from shrimp farming Farming system Solid waste discharge (m3/ha/yr)

According to Nguyen Nhuong, an intensive shrimp farmer in Phu An:

"Waste discharge from infected farms would infect water and other wild aquatic animals in lagoon, especially viral pathogen as in the case of white spot disease The other farms supplied with water from the lagoon, again would receive these vectors and therefore become secondary victims of infection In addition, birds also eat the infected shrimp and fly to the other farms and might be dangerous carriers In this way, outbreaks of disease, especial viral epidemics, would rapidly infect the entire lagoon and farming

inappropriate farming practices, improper pond design, and poor seed, then disease would outbreak out, particularly in situations of weather fluctuation and, irrigation Most of farms became infected in March and June after crops had continued for 50 days

In the group discussion, most respondents (66%) agreed that the application of drugs, chemicals and overfeeding led to water degradation in the lagoon The discharge of a large amount of solid waste to the lagoon during pond preparation was critical evidence People claimed that using saponin and chlorine to clean the pond and treat water could be toxic for the lagoon's wild aquatic animals The reason is that local shrimp farmers have no knowledge about how to use chemicals wisely and this was identified as the murder of fish and red-blooded animals The situation become worse in Phu An since proportion of shrimp farm Type I and Type II was more than the available area for fishing (Sam Chuong sub-lagoon) However, the remaining 34% of respondents argued that the issues were not so serious According to them most waste from shrimp farms was organic and could be diluted or decomposed quickly in the lagoon or discharged to the Pacific Ocean through the two river mouths, Thuan An and Tu Hien These people also argued that compared to other sources of pollutants for the lagoon, such as domestic sewage and agriculture wastes, that shrimp farming has contributed a smaller proportion to the water quality degradation of the lagoon

Table 16 Local perception about effects of shrimp farming waste on the lagoon water quality (N=294 respondents)

Effect level (%) Very

Nguyen Trai, a shrimp farmer in Vinh Ha, stated:

“We discharge waste to the lagoon because there is no place for waste storage before discharging here We have known that this activity is bad for the environment and polluted the lagoon water However, we have no choice, we are farming without a communal plan for aquaculture, and local government do not design any places for waste storage Most of shrimp farms here are improved extensive ones with low investment since we do not have much money to design small treatment system for waste, sorry!”

An anonymous officer of the Department of Fishery said:

“The shrimp farmers can discharge waste to the lagoon without considering the consequences, such actions benefit him only, but pollution and disease outbreak is suffered by others There were no available regulations to charge them to pay or pay how much”

Low levels of trust and lack of cooperation lead to high discharges of waste water with pathogen to the lagoon areas that are key factors contributing to widespread disease throughout the area in recent years

3.6 Disease issues

One of the major constraints for shrimp farming in Phu Vang District was disease problem according to Nguyen Quang Phuc, Fisheries Officer in Phu Vang District Since 2001, diseases continued occurring in Phu An and since 2002 in Vinh Ha, leading to considerable losses for the local community Community members told us that in 2004 these two communes also became the victims of the disease outbreak with high losses compared to other communes in Phu Vang district Table 17 shows the proportion of shrimp farms that encountered disease and their responses upon discovering infection in the ponds Upon recognizing farm infection, all of farm Type I had no strategies to

Deleted: Phan Van Xuan, a