Never before have water levels and volumes in major rivers, streams and lakes in the region been as low as this year, according to Ngo Chi Binh, deputy director of the Hydro-meteorological Forecasting Centre in the Central Highlands region.

In early March, he said the water level was 0.5m lower than the average level recorded in previous years, even 1.3 m lower than it used to be in some places. It is forecast that 30 percent of major reservoirs in the region will not be able to supply enough water for agricultural production till the end of the crop.

In Dak Lak province, water levels in the Serepok and Krong Ana rivers are just a little more than half the average level several years ago and are continuing to recede rapidly. The province is running short of water for agricultural production although it has as many as 533 irrigation projects, including 441 reservoirs of different sizes.

According to the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, more than 2,000ha of winter-spring rice, mostly wet rice, and more than 2,000ha of coffee are dying for lack of water. In Ea Yong commune alone, 319 households are likely to suffer hunger as 143 ha of wet rice and 312 ha of coffee are withering. Local authorities are making every effort to combat drought and provide emergency relief for hungry households.

Experts forecast that if the heat wave continues to bake the region in the next two weeks, the drought-hit acreage in Dak Lak is likely to grow 10 times as large as the current size.

In Gia Lai province, by early March, more than 2,200ha of various crops had faced severe water shortages. Krong Chro, the hardest hit district, has planted 2,800ha of crops, mostly drought-resistant varieties such as crossbred maize, hybrid cassava and beans, but one third of the acreage is in danger of dying. Coffee growers in Chu Se, Chu Prong and Ia Grai communes are worried about their crop as coffee trees are withering due to water shortages.

More seriously, about 700,000ha of forests in Gia Lai are facing the risk of catching fire due to severe drought. In the first two months of this year, more than 130ha of protective forests were destroyed by fire.

In Lam Dong province, many lakes, reservoirs, rivers and streams are drying up. Luckily, local farmers have completed harvesting their subsidiary crops. If the drought continues to last till late March, about 120,000ha of coffee, 25,000ha of tea, 12,000ha of cashew and 6,000ha of mulberry will be badly affected. In Di Linh district alone, as many as 5,000 pumping machines can only bring water to less than 40 percent of total cultivated land. 

To cope with the possible prolonged drought this year, Central Highlands provinces and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) have asked local farmers to sow seeds at the fixed time, shift crops in drought-prone areas and dredge canals.

Nguyen Trung Trinh, head of the Dak Lak provincial Department of Water Resources, said Central Highlands provinces should have a long term plan to restructure their agricultural production while building new irrigation projects to ensure an adequate supply of water for production and daily consumption during the dry season.

According to the Hydro-meteorological Forecasting Centre in the Central Highlands region, low rainfall is a common occurrence between November and April, which makes up 10 percent of the total rainfall recorded in a year. Many localities are likely to see no rain or a low rainfall of just 5mm per month.