The development of aquaculture in Hanoi city

HNUE JOURNAL OF SCIENCE DOI: 10.18173/2354-1067.2017-0048 Social Sci., 2017, Vol. 62, Iss. 5, pp. 164-174 This paper is available online at THE DEVELOPMENT OF AQUACULTURE IN HANOI CITY Vu Thi Mai Huong Faculty of Geography, Hanoi National University of Education Abstract. The article uses a series of statistical data from 2001 to 2014 to analyze and assess the situation of aquaculture development in Hanoi city. The results showed that the gross output, area, yield and production of aquaculture tended to increase remarkably. The farming methods have gradually shifted from extensive and improved - extensive farming to semi - intensive, intensive farming. Some concentrated aquaculture areas have been planned. However, farming area is still limited compared to its potential. The area of intensive and semi - intensive farming is not stable. Yield is still low compared to many other localities. The main species are traditional fish. The infrastructure of concentrated aquaculture areas lacks of synchronization. It is necessary to focus on the solutions to varieties, infrastructure, science - technology, investment and trade to better exploit the potential, advantages and to overcome the limitations of the aquaculture in Hanoi. Keywords: Aquaculture, development, Hanoi city. 1. Introduction Hanoi is a city with many potential and favorable conditions for the development of freshwater aquaculture. In the city, there are many types of areas for aquaculture such as small ponds, rivers, streams, dams (irrigation and natural lakes) and especially large areas of inefficient paddy fields which can be turned into concentrated aquaculture areas. So far, aquaculture - related research in Hanoi has a relatively small number of works [3, 7, 8, 9, 10]. Most of the research is done in the new Hanoi area (including old Ha Tay). Only chapter 21 of part 4 of the Hanoi Geography [9 forthcoming], in which the author was involved in compiling, presented the situation of aquaculture in both old Hanoi and new Hanoi. Continuing this research, the author will analyze, synthesize and compare the statistics over the two milestones of the period 2001 - 2007 and 2008 - 2014 for accurate assessment and evaluation of the changing trend in aquaculture in Hanoi before and after the extension of administrative boundaries. Received date: 10/1/2017. Published date: 3/5/2017. Contact: Vu Thi Mai Huong, e-mail: huongvmh@yahoo.com 164 The development of aquaculture in Hanoi city 2. Content 2.1. The gross output of aquaculture Over the past years, the fishery has contributed significantly to the growth of gross output of agriculture - forestry - fishery sector. The gross output of fishery has always shown an uptrend with high increase. In the period of 2001 - 2007, the fishery sector recorded the highest growth rate (3.3%), followed by agriculture (2.5%) and forestry (-16.7%). In the period of 2008 - 2014, the growth rate of fishery gross output was 15.1%, much higher than 3.4% of agriculture and 1.3% of forestry. The growth rate of fishery has contributed to the average growth rate of agriculture - forestry - fishery sector at 2.4%/year in 2001 - 2007 and 4.0%/year in the period of 2008 - 2014. Another noteworthy point is that if the period 2001 - 2007 the growth rate of fishery gross output in Hanoi was the lowest in the Red river delta region, the period 2008 - 2014 reached the highest level in the region. With the aim of agricultural restructure related to the market, the fishery has been considered as the most potential sector in the field of agriculture - forestry - fishery and one of the key directions of agricultural development in Hanoi. The major contribution to the growth of the entire fishery sector is related to the role of the aquaculture. Table 1. Gross output of aquaculture in Hanoi Year Constant prices Current prices Fishery (billion VND) Aquaculture (billion VND) Index of development (%) Fishery (billion VND) Aquaculture (billion VND) Proportion (%) Before the expansion of the boundary 2001 74 69 104.5 87 80 92.2 2003 76 72 101.4 115 106 92.6 2005 83 81 105.1 125 120 96.0 2007 90 87 104.8 189 182 96.5 After the expansion of the boundary 2008 1,043 988 90.2 777 730 94.0 2010 1,679 1,586 134.6 1,679 1,585 94.4 2012 2,107 1,979 110.1 3,112 2,935 94.3 2014 2,428 2,283 107.4 3,706 3,503 94.5 (Source: Synthesized from [5, 6]) In 2007, the gross output of aquaculture reached 87 billion VND (at constant 1994 prices), an increase of 18 billion VND compared to 2001. In general, in the 2001 - 2007 period, the average growth rate of gross output of aquaculture reached 3.9%/year. The gross output of aquaculture in 2014 reached 2,283 billion VND (at constant 2010 prices), an increase of 1,295 billion VND compared to 2008. The growth rate of gross output of aquaculture in the period 2008 - 2014 reached an average of 15.0%/year. Aquaculture also occupies the most important position in the internal production structure of the fishery sector. During the years of 2001 through 2014, the proportion of 165 Vu Thi Mai Huong gross output of aquaculture continued to be maintained at 92 - 97% of total gross output of fishery. The main reason is that in the period of 2008 - 2014 and in the period of 2001 - 2007, there was a reasonable adjustment of resources in Hanoi city, especially land (converting some lowland areas to aquaculture). Aquaculture grew at a high rate, yielding good results in output value for the fishery in general and changing the proportion of aquaculture in particular. 2.2. The area of aquaculture The area of aquaculture in Hanoi tends to increase significantly in recent years. Before 2008, the area of aquaculture was unstable, ranging from 3,100 to 3,500 ha due to the fact that many ponds were leveled up to get construction land and faced risks due to weather, environment, epidemics and natural disasters. Since 2008, the area of aquaculture has been constantly expanding. Up to 2014, the area of aquaculture in the city’s area reached 23,137 ha, an increase of 5,092 ha compared to 2008, an average increase of 4.2%/year. This result was due to the fact that in the past years, Hanoi has done a lot of land consolidation, conversion of low - lying areas, inefficient rice cultivation into concentrated aquaculture areas and actively improving the unused water surface area, combined with the implementation of one rice crop and one fish crop. Increasing the area of aquaculture has contributed to improving the efficiency of land use associated with promoting the production of goods, creating jobs, increasing income for the population. However, the area of aquaculture account for only 75.0% of the total potential area (30,840 ha). Figure 1. The area of aquaculture and gross output of product per ha of aquaculture water surface in Hanoi [5, 6] The gross output per ha of area of water surface for aquaculture is also increasing due to the increase in the application of science and technology and the development of high economic value objects. The gross output of aquaculture increased by 29.7 million VND/ha (14.5%/year) in the period 2001 - 2007 and 111.0 million VND/ha (24.6%/year) in the period 2008 - 2014. Compared with cultivation, the economic efficiency of aquaculture is much higher (59.4 million VND/ha in 2014), 2.5 times higher. 166 The development of aquaculture in Hanoi city Thanks to the expansion of administrative boundaries and increase of farming area, Hanoi has become the region with the largest aquaculture area in the Red river delta region. In 2008, the area of aquaculture accounted for 17.8% of the total area of aquaculture in the whole country. If calculated separately in 2014, the area of aquaculture in Hanoi is almost two times higher than the provinces in the top two and four to five times the provinces in the bottom [10]. Aquaculture areas are located in all suburban districts of Hanoi. It has formed the key districts (mainly in former Ha Tay province) on aquaculture development with concentrated aquaculture areas such as Ung Hoa (3,677 ha in 2014), Ba Vi (3,619 ha) Ha), My Duc (3,229 ha), Chuong My (1,874 ha), Phu Xuyen (1,771 ha). 2.3. The aquatic farming methods The aquatic farming methods in Hanoi are also becoming more diversified. The city has adopted a variety of farming methods ranging from extensive and improved - extensive farming, to semi - intensive and intensive farming. Intensive farming is a method at a high technical level, in accordance with strict technical rules. The technical parameters of the ponds must meet quality standards, selecting pure seedlings of all sizes, stocking with high density, strict application of technical care and protection measures, such as industrially feeding and managing ponds regularly and disease prevention; finished infrastructure includes lagoon, irrigation, transportation, water supply and drainage systems, aeration. Intensive farming produces much higher yield than extensive farming. According to statistics of the Hanoi Statistics Office, in 2014, the city had 9,138 ha of water surface area for intensive farming, an increase of 220 ha compared to 2011, an average increase of 0.8%/year. Table 2. The aquaculture area of Hanoi according to farming methods Farming area 2011 2012 2013 2014 Total farming area 20,640 20,811 21,044 23,137 The area of intensive farming (ha) 8,918 7,035 7,823 9,138 - Structure (%) 43.2 33.8 37.2 39.5 The area of semi - intensive farming (ha) 3,875 10,312 10,653 9,757 - Structure (%) 18.8 49.6 50.6 42.2 The area of extensive and improved - extensive farming (ha) 7,847 3,464 2,568 4,242 - Structure (%) 38.0 16.6 12.2 18.3 (Source: Calculated from [5]) Semi - intensive farming is lower on technical level than intensive farming but higher than improved - extensive farming. Breeding stock is a producing breed or natural breed, stocking density is high; the system of ponds, lakes and farming ponds are invested intensively, with the accompanying machinery such as aeration machines, water - rotating fans...; feeding daily with mainly industrial feed. The area of semi - intensive farming of Hanoi has increased sharply from 3,875 ha (in 2011) to 9,757 ha (in 2014). The average growth rate of 2011 - 2014 period was 36%/year. Improved - extensive farming is lower on technical level than semi - intensive but higher than extensive farming. Low stocking 167 Vu Thi Mai Huong density, industrial feed or conventional feed combined with low intensity but regular feed are used. Extensive (or traditional) farming is a simple farming technique that has little impact on the development, growth of the target species, low stocking density, depending mainly on natural feeding. This model is less damaging to the environment but the yield is very low. The area of extensive and improved - extensive farming in Hanoi tended to decrease sharply from 7,847 ha in 2011 to 4,242 ha in 2014, decreasing by 18.5%/year on average. In general, farming methods have gradually shifted to semi - intensive and intensive farming. The area of intensive and semi - intensive farming is expanding. Up to 2014, semi - intensive farming area accounted for 42.2% and intensive farming accounted for 39.5% of total aquaculture area. However, the increase in scale area of these two methods is not stable. 2.4. The production of aquaculture The production of aquaculture in the city has continuously increased over the years. Between 2001 and 2007, aquaculture production increased from 8,722 tons to 10,802 tons (an increase of 3.6%/year). From 2008 to 2014, aquaculture production increased sharply, from 34,746 tons to 82,444 tons (up 15.5%/year). As a result, the share of aquaculture output in total aquaculture production increased from 91% to 95%. However, with a large population and high income, demand for fishery products in Hanoi is quite high (about 210,000 tons/year), the current production only meets nearly 40% of demand [8]. This means that the market advantage combined with the potential for water surface will be an opportunity for Hanoi to increase aquaculture production. Figure 2. The production of aquaculture in Hanoi [5] The production of aquaculture is constantly increasing in addition to the increase in farming area due to the aggressive conversion of low - land rice paddy fields with unstable yields to aquaculture areas and large scale aquaculture farms. Farmers have increased their technical investment, feeding and breeding stock to increase their productivity. The districts with the largest aquaculture production are also the leading districts in aquaculture area and are currently concentrated mainly in aquaculture areas such as Ung Hoa, My Duc, Ba Vi, Phu Xuyen, Chuong My, Thanh Oai, Thuong Tin. 168 The development of aquaculture in Hanoi city 2.5. The yield of aquaculture The yield of aquaculture is increasing with increasing area and production. Average yield increased from 2.57 tons/ha in 2001 to 3.16 tons/ha in 2007, from 1.92 tons/ha in 2008 to 3.56 tons/ha in 2014 (see table 3). Beside the traditional farming method, Hanoi has focused on expanding the scale of advanced farming methods (semi - intensive and intensive farming), using synthetic feeds, thus contributing to increasing aquaculture productivity. According to Hanoi Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, based on the type of aquaculture, the focused farming area has the highest yield (4.5 – 5.0 tons/ ha/year), in which intensive fish aquaculture of hybrid tilapia is about 8 - 10 tons/ha/year, and the individual tilapia is about 10 - 15 tons/ ha/year, particularly, there are some models of intensive culture with high yield of 20 tons/ha/year [9]. However, the yield of aquaculture in Hanoi is still low compared with other provinces of the Red river delta region (Thai Binh 7.2 tons/ha, Hung Yen 7.1 tons/ha, Bac Ninh 6.3 tons/ha, Hai Duong 6.1 tons/ha, Nam Dinh 4.2 tons/ha, Hai Phong 4.1 tons/ha - calculated in 2014) [1]. Table 3. The yield of aquaculture in Hanoi 2001 2003 2005 2007 2008 2010 2012 2014 Production (tons) 8,722 8,975 9,816 10,802 34,746 56,628 67,784 82,444 Area (ha) 3,389 3,311 3,088 3,413 18,045 20,555 20,811 23,137 Yield (tons/ha) 2.57 2.71 3.18 3.16 1.92 2.75 3.25 3.56 (Source: [5]) The yield of aquaculture has been increasing but still slowly compared to other localities because the source of seed supply for production in Hanoi is now only able to meet requirements of 60 - 65% in quantity. At the same time, the infrastructure of seeding production in many places is degraded, the quality of parental stock is not guaranteed. Seed production is mainly traditional (sesames, drifts, burns, carps). However, the new breeds that can be exported and high economic value varieties are not in active, mostly imported from other localities [2]. Therefore, productivity of Hanoi aquaculture is pretty low compared with its potentials. This is a favorable condition for Hanoi to increase productivity in the coming years. 2.6. The seasons of aquaculture Like many northern provinces, the seasons of aquaculture in Hanoi often starts from february to april and lasts throughout the year. The time of harvesting fish is usually in december, january or february (in the next year). However, to avoid harvesting fish at a time leading to lower production costs, many farming areas have applied the method of pruning, releasing fish leading to harvests all year round. Many households use large seedlings or use some nursing ponds and when the fish reach large - size seedlings, they will be transferred to commercial ponds so that one year fish can be harvested 3 - 4 times. Many farms and fish farming households follow a combined farming model therefore the season is not clear [3]. 169 Vu Thi Mai Huong 2.7. The farmed aquatic species Species are relatively diverse, suitable with different food spectrum, to make full use of nutrients in the food chain of the water body. In the aquaculture structure, fish is always the largest species, shrimps and other aquatic species account for a very small proportion. Fish farming has been developed mainly since the late 1980s and early 1990s. It allows people to gain profit from poor - quality land. Currently, fish occupy the majority of aquaculture area (99.2% - 99.9% of total aquaculture area) and almost all aquaculture production (accounting for 99.6 – 99.9% of aquaculture production). Among the fish species, the main objects are still traditional fish such as amur, dory, carp, tilapia, pomfret; among which amur and carp are the two main species, and these two fish are of high value in the traditional fish group, which is popular with the market. In addition to the traditional fish, some new species such as black carp, black tilapia, tilapia, square headfish, hybrid carp, whitefish, eel, sea bass, red snapper,... are also put into production and expanded to increase production value. In addition, in recent years, the Hanoi Agricultural Extension Center has developed a number of pilot farming models of crisp and crispy carp (with the use of mulberry for feeding fish for the last 2 - 3 months before harvesting. The price of fish at harvest is 1.5 to 2 times higher than the price of normal fish. This is a new way to increase the value of the species. Table 4. The area and production of aquaculture in Hanoi classified by species 2001 2003 2005 2007 2008 2010 2012 2014 Area (ha) 3,389 3,311 3,088 3,413 18,045 20,555 20,811 23,137 - Fish 3,363 3,259 3,072 3,394 18,020 20,538 20,792 23,127 - Shrimp 26 52 16 19 20 11 10 0 - Other fisheries 0 0 54 0 5 6 9 10 Production (tons) 8,722 8,975 9,816 10,802 34,746 56,628 67,784 82,444 - Fish 8,688 8,928 9,795 10,774 34,717 56,601 67,739 82,412 - Shrimp 34 47 21 28 21 14 25 0 - Other fisheries 0 0 0 0 8 13 20 32 (Source: [5]) Shrimp farming, mainly the blue shrimp, began to be introduced in 2001. This species was introduced from the south, not adapted to the cold weather in the North, also the consumptionmarket was difficult. The area and output were unstable and concentrated only in some districts such as Gia Lam, Thanh Tri, Soc Son. In addition, Hanoi also focuses on the development of a number of aquatic species with high economic value such as frogs, crocodiles, tortoise ... However, the area and output are still not significant. Frogs are mainly raised in Soc Son, crocodile in My Duc, Dan Phuong. In general, the structure of farming species has not been strongly changed and the traditional farming structure (mainly fish) has been developed. Species with high quality and high economic value still account for a low percentage. 2.8. The water types for aquaculture In the area of Hanoi, freshwater aquaculture is mainly developed. Freshwater aquaculture areas are diverse, ranging from small ponds, large water surfaces (irrigation 170 The development of aquaculture in Hanoi city lakes, natural lakes), rivers and streams to ineffective paddy fields. Aquaculture in low - land paddy fields has become the main type of aquaculture in Hanoi. The area of low - land farming in 2008 reached 7,012 ha (accounting for 38.8% of the total aquaculture area). Due to the intensive conversion of low - land areas and inefficient rice cultivating areas to aquaculture to form concentrated aquaculture areas, the total area of low - land aquaculture areas in 2014 increased to 12,104 ha (accounting for 52.3%). Large water surface aquaculture has a stable area of 4,327 ha, since no new lakes were built during this period. Lots of clean water areas, unpolluted water areas suitable for aquaculture, especially fish species of high economic value, should be used and be multiplied. Aquaculture in ponds and lakes also ha