Hanoi and other cities in regional countries such as Indonesia and the Philippines are negatively affected by climate change.
The Hanoi Department of Natural Resources and Environment on August 16 held a technical workshop to mobilize local stakeholders to take actions on climate in the city under the framework of "Ambitious city promises" project.
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Deputy Director of Hanoi Natural Resources and Environment Department Le Tuan Dinh addressed the workshop
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Deputy Director of Hanoi Department of Natural Resources and Environment Le Tuan Dinh said that in the process of urbanization and administrative boundary expansion, Hanoi has become one of the 17 largest capitals in the world by area. The city is negatively impacted by climate change, evidenced by a higher frequency of extreme weather such as scorching heat, prolonged cold spells, and flooding.
Asynchronous planning, poor integration of solutions to mitigate natural disasters and adapt to climate change, limited knowledge in the community on climate change challenge Hanoi’s development, Dinh said.
Over the past 60 years, floods in Hanoi have become more frequent with flooding occuring every five to even years. Unusual heavy rainfall took place at the end of October 2008. River water levels rose to alert level 3 - the maximum, water in reservoirs exceeded the designed levels, heavy rains caused widespread flooding and damaged nearly 55,000 hectares of winter crops and affected nearly 100,000 households, Dinh added.
Hanoi and other cities in regional countries such as Indonesia and the Philippines are negatively affected by climate change. With the aim of assisting cities to cope with climate change, the "Ambitious city promises" project is supported by the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI). It aims to develop commitments to greenhouse gas reduction, develop action plans in line with specific objectives, and increase the participation of all levels from central to local levels in order to develop strategies of climate change response in the future, Dinh stressed.
Hanoi joined the "Ambitious city promises" project in October 2017. The Department of Natural Resources and Environment is assigned as the focal point of the city in coordination with the National Institute for Urban and Rural Planning, the coordinating agency of the project, to carry out activities in accordance with the project’s objectives. The project is funded by the German Ministry of Environment and Nuclear Safety through the program of International Climate Initiative, Dinh affirmed.
Anh Kiet