Using Remote Sensing Data for Coastal TT-Hue Province, Vietnam

The demand for and uses of Remote Sensing (RS) in a vulnerable coastal province, such as Thua Thien Hue (TT-Hue) province, in Central Vietnam is increasing. This Technical Letter focuses on the applications of RS for policy- and decision-making. The TT-Hue RS end-uses are embedded in a national setting within an Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) frame. Increased knowledge on natural and socio-economic, coastal processes is required for ICZM in TT-Hue province. RS and GIS are integrating and supporting tools pur sang, providing overviews on topography and land-uses, through temporal and spatial analyses. International exchange of tools facilitates ICZM programming. Vietnam and the Netherlands are cooperating in the field of ICZM since more than a decade. The Coastal Cooperative Program (CCP) increases the exchange between Vietnam and The Netherlands in the fields of physical, bio-chemical and societal processes. The CCP-Remote Sensing applications for TT-Hue province has greatly contributed to thematic mapping and has strongly increased the knowledge base of provincial coastal dynamic processes: flooding, erosion and changes in land-use and aquaculture. The Vietnamese national and provincial authorities and the local stakeholders increasingly appreciate the significance of RS applications for: hazard assessments, physical planning through zoning of functional uses, and sustainable exploitation of the TT-Hue coastal resources.