Four pairs of hands quickly pick up chive bulbs from the smooth sand. They place the best ones in the right basket. The ones that are not as satisfactory were placed on the left side. This is the result of five months of hard work by two families, Mr Phuc’s and Mrs Ai-Mr Dang’s. Within the next few weeks, these bulbs will be sold to market with an estimated revenue of ten million Viet Nam Dong (approximately US$430).
“We’ve been growing chives here for about four years. Before that, the area was used to grow cajuput trees,” Mr Phuc said. Chives are one of the most popular and ubiquitous herbs for people living in the Central of Vietnam. This herb has long been prized for more than its pleasant flavor. It gives a hint of flavor and color to a wide range of savory dishes.
Village 2, Hai Thien commune, Hai Lang district was a hotbed of conflict during the war. Having lived through such a brutal war, four of the people we met that day did not want to repeat those memories. This was partly because they were too young, partly because of the losses they suffered.
“All I remember is that after the war, bombs and bullets were everywhere in the village and people died trying to collect scrap from them,” recalled Mr Dang.
War-time bombs hindered people’s farming access. The villagers abandoned land or planted cajuput trees with low yields for firewood as they did not require deep digging. On a land use map of Village 2 in 1989, the cooperative head Mr Do pointed out the contaminated area that was cleared by MAG in 2019. “This area is blue, indicating its use for cajuput planting back then.”
Following MAG’s clearance of nearly 495,000 square meters of contaminated land in the village in 2019, the commune authorities and Village 2 Cooperative distributed the land to local farmers for crop cultivation. “There is nothing better than planting chives on this land. Every year, we plant chives during the six months of the rainy season. It has been a lot more profitable to grow chives,” said Mr Phuc.
“Let me calculate for you, 500 square meters of chives make a profit of approximately ten million Viet Nam Dong. The area here is 250,000 square metres for chives, so our combined income is over five billion a year. In the past, the whole area was used to grow cajuput, and after 16 years of harvesting, we made only 30 million Viet Nam Dong,” he explained.
In the village, Mr Phuc’s and Mrs Ai’s families grow rice as well but the income is far lower than for chives. They can only make one million from 500 square metres of rice, whereas chives are ten times more profitable. Mrs Ai shared, “When we started planting chives, we thought it would be a subsidy, but it ended up being our main source of income”.
“I must mention here the merits of MAG Deminers. Without them, this land would still be abandoned or planted with cajuput. Since people fear bombs, they would not act otherwise,” Mr Dang said. “MAG cleared the bombs so we could farm safely, especially since we have to plow the ground 30 centimetres deep before planting chives.”
Mr Phuc, sitting next to him, added, “First of all, there are no more bombs, and secondly, there are no more rusted metals. It was impossible to cultivate here due to the saltiness caused by them. Also, we were afraid of hitting these pieces of shrapnel when farming since they could cause infections and tetanus”.
The area has become a chive-producing hub and this has been a major game-changer for many people. They can now make a living off their land and provide a better future for their families. The success of this venture has inspired other villages to adopt similar agricultural practices. In addition, the new crops have improved the soil quality after four years of planting and cultivating them, according to Mr Do, the Cooperative Head.
“The best way to get high quality chives is to plant them with bio-fertilizers. Chives will also die if chemicals are applied to kill fungus. We use lime powder instead. By using this farming method, the soil has become more porous and the plants have grown organically. A lot of sand has turned into porous soil. Herbs like chives are soil treatments.”
Looking at the results achieved today in the land previously abandoned, Mr Dang stated, “The war is over, but it takes decades to rid this land of bombs. Now I just hope the weather is favorable for the chives to grow well, get a lot of harvest and have a high income”.
Mrs Ai-Mr Dang’s family and Mr Phuc’s family are two of 170 households who produce and cultivate on land cleared of unexploded bombs by MAG with support from the U.S. Government. A total of 160 items of explosive ordnances have been safely disposed of, and many new futures have been built in seemingly uncultivable places.
Village 2, Hai Thien commune is also one of the areas severely affected by flooding and other natural disasters in Quang Tri. Humanitarian mine action in this village has helped increase crop income and food reserves during natural disasters by expanding arable land. They also use their farming methods to bring life back to the land, preventing desertification. This has enabled the community to become more selfreliant and resilient to the impacts of climate change.
MAG’s deminers works on the confirmed contaminated area in Village 2, Hai Thien commune (Photos taken in 2019 Source MAG VN)
Source MAG VN
