The weather in the middle of April seems harsher in the Mekong Delta. Farmer Nguyen Chi Hien in Tan Bang Commune of Thoi Binh District in Ca Mau Province discouragingly visited his shrimp ponds. Seeing many of them die because of a lack of water despite his effort to pump water continuously, he was deeply worried.

Many neighboring farmers only began raising shrimp after they had harvested their rice crop, which was coincident with the prolonged and extreme hot weather this year. That is one key factor leading to mass deaths of their shrimps.

The status in Kien Giang Province is not at all more optimistic. Hundreds of farmers raising giant freshwater prawns in U Minh Thuong District cannot do anything to prevent their prawns from dying owing to serious water shortage.

Farmer Le Van Thuc from An Minh Bac Commune of this district sadly shared that for the last ten days, his family has repeatedly pumped freshwater into the ponds to help their prawns but to no avail. The high salinity in the water now is able to kill the prawns easily. He predicted that this year he can only harvest 500kilos of prawns, which means a certain profit loss with the price of VND85,000 – 90,000 / kilo (US$3.36 – 3.55).

Statistics of the People’s Committee of U Minh Thuong District reveal that there are 274 households in the area raising giant freshwater prawns now on a surface area of 750ha. Most of them are facing desperate water shortage, causing deaths to their prawns.

Director Le Huu Toan of the Agriculture and Rural Development Department of Kien Giang Province shared that to minimize damage to prawn farmers during this harsh weather, his department is carrying out various measures like helping them to sell mature healthy prawns quickly and asking sewer management units to operate wisely to ensure sufficient water for manufacturing activities.

More importantly, farmers are provided with Chlorine to kill pathogens, especially on the ponds having dead prawns due to sickness, so that they are ready to raise the new batch when the weather is more favorable. The long-term plan is to build the salinity prevention sluice system on the West Dike of the sea.

The Division of Animal Health of Ca Mau Province informed that more than 8,520ha of shrimp ponds under the models of extensive farming or advanced extensive farming have infected shrimps due to unstable pond conditions, causing damage of 35 – 75 percent.

Chairman of the People’s Committee of Ca Mau Province Huynh Quoc Viet said that the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has received order to work closely with all localities to monitor the disease status in shrimp ponds for timely handling and minimizing profit loss to farmers.

In addition, this department is directed to propagandize common shrimp pathogens and corresponding treatments so that concerned farmers can actively adopt suitable methods to limit  the spread of diseases. Already damaged ponds can receive support from the local authorities.