logging and slash-and-burn agricultural practices contribute to deforestation and soil degradation; water pollution and overfishing threaten marine life populations; groundwater contamination limits potable water supply; growing urban industrialization and population migration are rapidly degrading environment in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
extending 1,650 km north to south, the country is only 50 km across at its narrowest point
People
Vietnam
Population:
86,116,560 (July 2008 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 25.6% (male 11,418,642/female 10,598,184) 15-64 years: 68.6% (male 29,341,216/female 29,777,696) 65 years and over: 5.8% (male 1,925,609/female 3,055,212) (2008 est.)