Chapter 6 - Land-Cover and Land-Use Transitions in Northern Vietnam From the Early 1990s to 2012

Abstract

This chapter is an overview of the changes in both land use and land cover that have taken place in the lowlands, midlands, and uplands of northern Vietnam between the onset of doi moi and 2012. For the purposes of this review, northern Vietnam is considered inclusive of the area from southern Nghe An Province to the border with China. From a review of studies done and literature published during this period, it is concluded that in the lowlands, while urban areas have grown and the orientation of many villages have changed from an agricultural focus to a periurbanization focus, urban growth has mainly been through infilling of areas and the land use is still dominated by agriculture and the land cover has remained dominated by agricultural crops, particularly rice. Reasons for the paucity of extensive land-cover change are discussed. In the midlands and uplands five trajectories of land-use change are identified from the literature: (1) status quo, in other words continued swidden/fallow agricultural use; (2) swidden/fallow system to permanent tree crops; (3) swidden/fallow to permanent crop land; (4) swidden/fallow to timber plantation; and (5) swidden/fallow to increasing cattle raising and increasing pastureland use. The land cover that is associated with each of the land uses is discussed. The chapter ends by discussing implications for biodiversity and carbon sequestration of the land-use and land-cover changes.