The Cấm River (

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overseas Vietnamese, Vietnamese people living outside Vietna ...

: Sông Cấm) is a river in northern

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

. It is one of the shorter

distributaries A distributary, or a distributary channel is a stream channel that branches off and flows a main stream channel. It is the opposite of a ''tributary'', a stream that flows another stream or river. Distributaries are a result of river bifurca ...

of the

Thái Bình River Thái Bình river (Vietnamese: Sông Thái Bình) is the name of the Thái Bình river system's main river in Northern Vietnam. This river system joins with the Red River system and brings alluvium to create Red River Delta. Thái Bình river sta ...

but geographically important as

Haiphong Haiphong or Hai Phong (, ) is the third-largest city in Vietnam and is the principal port city of the Red River Delta. The municipality has an area of , consisting of 8 urban districts, 6 rural districts and 1 municipal city (sub-city). Two o ...

, Vietnam's second largest port is located on the banks of this river.

Geography and hydrology

The start of the Cấm River is the confluence of the

Kinh Môn River The Kinh Môn River () is a river of Vietnam. It flows through Hải Dương Province and Hai Phong Haiphong or Hai Phong (, ) is the third-largest city in Vietnam and is the principal port city of the Red River Delta. The municipality has an ...

and a smaller stream, the Hàn, in

Hải Dương province Hải Dương was a former province in the Red River Delta of northern Vietnam. Its name derives from Sino-Vietnamese "ocean sun", though the modern province is in fact landlocked. Located in the Northern Key Economic Region, Hai Duong Provin ...

. From there it flows southeasterly, turning more easterly at

Hai Phong Haiphong or Hai Phong (, ) is the third-largest city in Vietnam and is the principal port city of the Red River Delta. The municipality has an area of , consisting of 8 urban districts, 6 rural districts and 1 municipal city (sub-city). Two ...

before entering the

Gulf of Tonkin The Gulf of Tonkin is a gulf at the northwestern portion of the South China Sea, located off the coasts of Tonkin ( northern Vietnam) and South China. It has a total surface area of . It is defined in the west and northwest by the northern co ...

as a wide

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

farther downstream. The entire length of the river is . The Cấm is subject to frequent

silting Siltation is water pollution caused by particulate Terrestrial ecoregion, terrestrial Clastic rock, clastic material, with a particle size dominated by silt or clay. It refers both to the increased concentration of suspended sediments and to the i ...

, requiring regular

dredging Dredging is the excavation of material from a water environment. Possible reasons for dredging include improving existing water features; reshaping land and water features to alter drainage, navigability, and commercial use; constructing d ...

to accommodate ships of greater than .

References

*''Vietnam Administrative Atlas'', NXB Bản Đồ, 2004.

External links

Cục đường sông Việt Nam

Sông Cấm trên Website Hải Phòng
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cam River (Vietnam) Rivers of Haiphong Rivers of Hải Dương province Gulf of Tonkin Rivers of Vietnam