Conversations on Vietnam Development
By Z.K RUBIN, G.M. KONDOLF, AND P. CARLING (2014)
Dam locations are indicated for two scenarios: definite future, and full-build.
Main stream dams are included in full-build scenario, but represented separately.
Bedrock channel of the Mekong River with surficial sand deposits 1-2 m thick, near Xayaburi, Laos. (photo by Kondolf, January 2012) Tiếp tục đọc “ANTICIPATED GEOMORPHIC IMPACTS FROM MEKONG BASIN DAM CONSTRUCTION”
In District 1, away from all the upscale restaurants and swanky bars of the financial and entertainment districts is the first underground market of Saigon, where authentic Vietnamese food is crafted and enjoyed daily.
 Sense Market is located at the centre of District 1, B Park 23/9 and below Sen Hong Stage. The market opened January 7.
The entry road to the Sense Market is lush with green vegetation bordering it. It is just a short 10-minute walk to the popular Ben Thanh Market. Tiếp tục đọc “Saigon underground market” |
Bai Tu Long National Park in the northern province of Quang Ninh has been named the 38th ASEAN Heritage Park.
The title awarding ceremony was held by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the local People’s Committee in Ha Long city on May 19, coinciding with a ceremony to mark International Day for Biological Diversity (May 22) and International Migratory Bird Day (May 10). Tiếp tục đọc “Bai Tu Long National Park becomes ASEAN’s 38th heritage park”
Phu Quoc used to be an almost unknown island, but in recent years, the southern beaches of the island have turned into a worldwide vacation paradise thanks to the investment of many domestic and foreign companies. One of the biggest investor is Sun Group, with up to VND20 trillion ($881 million) of investment capital. Tiếp tục đọc “Giant projects transform the face of Phu Quoc”
Updated : 05/22/2017 15:01 GMT + 7
With the help of around VND100 million (US$4,400) and a good connection, a hotel built in violation of its permit can be ‘legitimized’ in Ho Chi Minh City.
Last month, T., an estate developer in Ho Chi Minh City, had planned on taking over a small hotel on Nguyen Thi Thap Street in District 7.
According to the building’s construction permit, the hotel is licensed to include one ground floor, one mezzanine, three floors and a partial roof. Tiếp tục đọc “Ho Chi Minh City estate official ‘rescues’ buildings violating construction permits”
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| Health officials spray chemicals to kill mosquitoes. One person has been confirmed dead from dengue fever in Hà Nội. — VNA/VNS Photo Dương Ngọc |
HÀ NỘI — The Hà Nội Health Department has announced the first death from dengue fever since the beginning of this year.The Central Tropical Diseases Hospital on Sunday confirmed that a 19-year-old student who rented a house in Đống Đa District’s Trung Liệt Ward died of dengue.
In Hà Nội, the number of patients with dengue fever has shown a tendency of increasing since early this month, with 27 cases recorded in the last two weeks. Tiếp tục đọc “Hà Nội reports first death from dengue fever”
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| Nguyễn Thị Hương (right), director of Dương Dũng Co., Ltd, and her husband Lương Văn Bình, deputy director of the company, were prosecuted for violating regulations related to natural resource exploitation. – VNA/VNS Photo Nguyễn Hoàng |
QUẢNG NINH — Police in northern Quảng Ninh Province have prosecuted eight people for illegal sand mining in the province.Nguyễn Thị Hương, director of Dương Dũng Co., Ltd, and her husband Lương Văn Bình, deputy director of the company, were prosecuted for violating regulations in connection with natural resources exploitation.
The six other people are Vũ Văn Lật, Vũ Đức Loan, Nguyễn Văn Tuấn and Lương Văn Ty, as well as Nguyễn Văn Đức, and Trần Thị Nhường. Tiếp tục đọc “Eight prosecuted for illegal sand mining”
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| Xuan Tai Company in the Highland province of Kon Tum was fined VND40 million ($1,769) for illegal sand exploitation. — Photo thiennhien.net |
KON TUM — Xuan Tai Company in the Highland province of Kon Tum was fined VND40 million ($1,769) for illegal sand exploitation, said Chief Inspector of the Department of Environment and Natural Resource Tran Cong Hau yesterday.
According to the department, the company was fined VND8 million for encroaching the Dak Bla River and VND32 million for illegally mining 3,507m3 of sand over an eight-month period.
A report from the Kon Tum Department of Mineral Resources and Environment said the Xuân Tài Co Ltd had used mechanised facilities to dig holes and build embankments to stop the flow of the Đăk Bla River in order to illegally exploit minerals, Tiếp tục đọc “Company fined for illegal sand mining on Đăk Bla River”
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| Erosion encroaches houses in coastal area of Vĩnh Nguyên Ward, central Nha Trang City. Climate change has influenced Việt Nam more quickly and strongly than was previously expected. — VNA/VNS Photo Nguyên Lý |
At the committee’s eighth meeting in Hà Nội, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development reported that climate change has appeared sooner than previously forecasted. The Mekong Delta, the country’s key agricultural hub, has suffered most severely. Up to 10 of the 13 Mekong Delta provinces declared a state of disaster in the dry season last year. Tiếp tục đọc “PM tells committee to strengthen int’l climate change co-operation”
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| A doctor at HCM City’s Hospital of Odonto-Stomatology treats a patient. Photo Sơn Hà |
By Sơn Hà
HCM CITY— With a pool of highly-skilled practitioners, state-of-the-art facilities and affordable costs, HCM City is rapidly emerging as a dental care tourism destination.
A full range of dental services is available, including cleaning, teeth whitening, dental implants, bone reconstruction orthodontics, ceramic veneers, crowns and bridges.
Dương Quốc Chí, 58, an overseas Vietnamese from Italy, combines a quick vacation in HCM City with a visit to a dentist.
“Dental care in Việt Nam costs about a third of the price compared to Italy,” he said. Tiếp tục đọc “HCM City keen to develop dental tourism”
Chi Chia-wei will find out on Wednesday if his decades long fight to make Taiwan the first country in Asia to legalise same-sex marriage has been a success.
Chi, 59, a pioneering Taiwanese gay rights activist, is the celebrated face behind one of the most controversial legal cases the island democracy has seen in recent years, where 14 judges must rule if the civil code, which states that marriage is between a man and a woman, is unconstitutional. Tiếp tục đọc “Taiwan’s same-sex marriage ruling could cement its place as Asia’s liberal beacon”
Indonesian police have arrested more than 100 men in a weekend raid on a gay sauna in the capital Jakarta, a day before two men are to be publicly flogged for having same sex relations.
Authorities raided what they said was a sex party promoted as ‘The Wild One,’ held at a sauna and gym venue in Jakarta’s north on Sunday evening. Tiếp tục đọc “Indonesian police arrest more than 140 men at alleged gay sauna party”
VietNamNet Bridge – For many, Nha Trang evokes images of the sea, or memories of holidays spent on the beach. Nha Trang has always been a popular destination for vacationing Vietnamese, but with air travel becoming ever cheaper and easier, international tourists are getting in on the action.
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| Northern-nostalgia: Le Hiep’s Teacher’s Pagoda in Ha Tay has a magical light. |
Visitors to Nha Trang expect a relaxing time, however, a group of local artists is looking to change that. The plan is to provide a more cultural experience to sun-and-sand-seeking holidaymakers. Tiếp tục đọc “Sunny Nha Trang a new hotspot for art”
VietNamNet Bridge – Viet Nam has 20 thermal power plants now and plans to have more than double that by 2050.
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Off the cuff, this makes sense. The nation is growing and needs more energy than ever.
However, if we look beyond mere numbers and visualise the social and environmental impacts of 51 coal-powered plants in the country, the rosy picture is blackened considerably, literally and otherwise.
A study published earlier this year by a group of researchers from Havard University and Greenpeace, an international non-governmental environmental organisation based in Amsterdam, cautions that by 2030, Viet Nam and Indonesia will be among the nations worst affected by coal pollution. Tiếp tục đọc “Black gold and a bleak future”
VietNamNet Bridge – Acid deposition and photochemical smog have appeared in recent years, mostly in summer months when the weather is dry and hot, especially in large urban areas such as Hanoi and HCMC.
According to Nguyen Van Thuy, director of the Environment Monitoring Center, besides domestic polluting sources, Vietnam is facing cross-border pollution as it is located next to countries with strong production such as China.
Thuy said Vietnam also bears influences from territories relatively far away from Vietnam. In winter, when the northeast monsoon comes down to the north, the pollutants from China are brought to Vietnam.
Though scientists still have not found clear signs of acid deposition, photochemical smog and cross-border pollution, there have been some certain signs. Tiếp tục đọc “Mercury crosses border gates, affecting environment”
CVD 