Urban and rural water supply development programs have been implemented recently for domestic and agro-industry water supply to serve 19 million of people. Domestic wells have been dug to exploit shallow lenses of freshwater beneath the dunes and beach ridges for over a hundred years. Many deep drilled wells were dug by farmers in coastal provinces for irrigation and shrimp farming. At the same time, reduced river discharge to the delta resulting from dam construction upstream, dikes and polder development in upper parts of the Mekong Delta have the potential to reduce affect ground water recharge substantially. External impacts from climate change and sea level rise will impact both groundwater quality and quantity.
This paper presented the research findings on perception, practices and coping strategies of smallholder farmers in Vinh Chau town of Soc Trang province. Some 30 farmers were interviewed using open ended questionnaires in 2015. The results indicated that perception of groundwater resources become more scared by most participants including women. However, they believed there are no other alternative water sources. Rainwater is enormous, but they perceived that quality is not good for drinking, so they shifted to use portable water which is withdrawal from groundwater. This puts a high pressure on groundwater resources. Almost every household have at least one well up to 160 meter depth. Some have up to three wells for domestic use, irrigation for red onions, and shrimp and fish farming.
The key coping behavior is by increasing depth of wells to withdraw more groundwater. Consequently, the ground water level has dropped over 10 meters in the last 20 years. This study suggests that governments and communities should approach to use rainwater for domestic use and irrigation, and approach alternative methods to reduce groundwater use in the long run.