4.3 Assessment of flooding hazards
The Mekong Delta in Vietnam covers close to 38,000 km2,
of which 12,000 km2 is flooded in low flood years and
18,000 km2 in high flood years (Hien 1998). Pangasius
ponds that are constructed near large streams for the
convenience of water exchange and transportation occupy
water storage capacity during flooding season. This
endangers dikes and therefore increases the risk of flooding.
The area of ponds constructed on endiked land and right
next to the dikes was 60 km2. This is less than 0.5% of the