After a long period of decline, the last two years have seen an increase in output of giant river prawns in the Mekong Delta.

 The first week of July witnessed an improvement in Hanoi’s air quality, according to the city’s Environment Protection Authority under the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

 The Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang has made a proposal for 300 billion VND (13.82 million USD) worth of Government aid in order to fix up its 14.5km span of severely eroded beaches.

 Trần Minh Tiến, owner of a shop in Long An Province, said he sells some 10 kinds of goods made from natural and environment-friendly materials such as grasses, bamboo and coconut fibre, replacing products made from plastic.

 Save Vietnam’s Wildlife (SVW), in cooperation with Cuc Phuong National Park in the northern province of Ninh Binh, has successfully released 25 Sunda pangolins (Manis javanica) into a safe habitat for the species.

 HCMC will reduce waste burial to below 50% by 2020 by switching to new waste treatment technologies, according to the city’s Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

 Save Vietnam’s Wildlife (SVW), in co-operation with Cuc Phuong National Park has successfully released 25 Sunda pangolins (Manis javanica) into a safe habitat for the species.

 The UNESCO World Heritage Site of Ha Long Bay in Quang Ninh Province faces severe threat of pollution as only 20% of domestic wastewater is treated before being discharged into the bay.

Vietnam National University, Hanoi and the Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies (KFAS) will co-host the Hanoi Forum 2018, an international academic conference on climate change response and sustainable development.

 A rare gibbon illegally kept by a man in Ho Chi Minh City has been transferred to Cat Tien National Forest.

 Becoming a wildlife conservationist to save species such as bears, rhinos and elephants from illegal trade was Nguyen Thi Thu Trang’s childhood dream. And today, she is living it.

Achim Steiner, UNDP Administrator and Vice Chair of the UN Sustainable Development Group at the GEF spoke about the 6th Global Environment Facility Assembly held in Da Nang recently.

 As Hanoi farmers have finished harvesting rice, people living in suburban areas have complained about the smoke in the air caused by the burning of straw fields.

 A bear protection exhibition was kicked off in Hanoi on June 30, in the presence of the World Animal Protection (WAP) Ambassador - Thai singer and actor Tono Pakin Kumwilaisuk, to raise public awareness of the importance of bear protection.

  The southernmost province of Ca Mau plans to build 2,100 metres of sea embankments over the next three months to protect dykes at high risk of erosion.

 The sixth Assembly of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) concluded on June 28 in the central city of Da Nang with 29 countries pledging to provide 4.1 billion USD for the next four years for numerous global environment-related programmes.

 The protective forest in Quang Ninh Province has been destroyed for a long time while local authorities have claimed they are unaware of the situation.

The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in Kien Giang Province held a joint conference about plastic waste on June 27 with World Wide Fund for Nature-Vietnam.    

 The Ambassador for the World Animal Protection (WAP), Thai singer and actor Tono Pakin Kumwilaisuk is set to come to Vietnam to attend a bear protection exhibition in Hanoi on June 30.

UN Habitat is willing to cooperate with Vietnam in urgent issues such as plastic waste and preservation of ancient cities, said Maimunah Mohd Sharif, UN Under Secretary-General and Executive Director of the UN Habitat.