Forest Protection Promoted

Vietnam’s forest resources are facing huge challenges, including illegal deforestation under different ways and purposes. This situation is becoming more complicated and causing difficulties for authorities in management and control. Because of its high social character, the issue is not only of any own sector, but also a joint one which requires the contribution and efforts of all authorized agencies.

 

Lots of the state’s support policies have been given to the field such as Projects 132, 134, 135, significantly contributing to change the face of countryside and mountain areas. However, the deforestation has not yet been solved absolutely. A series of communication activities on forest effective management and protection in recent years have helped raising the people’s awareness. A majority of people have understood that the deforestation is legal violation and damage to the environment. However, because consequences of the deforestation do not occur immediately, many people see only initial benefits rather than long-term loss. In addition, current punishment and sanction are not enough strong to deter violators. A number of violators are ethnic minority people whose life is needy and education is low, making them unable to follow fines. As a result, such violation cases have not been solved strictly, failing to educate the people.  

The Vietnamese government should further tighten the forest protection and management work as well as offer more immediate and long-term solutions for the issue.

 

In recent years, the government has issued and applied many policies which make strong impacts to the life of forest growers like the policy of forest and land allocation; the management policy of protection forest.  

With the theme  "Forests: Nature at your Service"”, the World Environment Day this year [June 5, along with Vietnam Sea and Island Week, will focus on the importance of forests to the life and ecology as well as make warning of the increasing deforestation and forest degradation globally. The Vietnamese Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment plans to cooperate with the Bac Kan provincial people’s committee to organize practical activities on the World Environment Day and the International Year on Forest 2011.

The policy on protection of forest resources shows the government’s special attention to the sustainable development of forest resources. In 2010, Vietnam offered a draft decree on Payments for Forest Environment Services (PES) which is considered the first and pioneer in Southeast Asia. Accordingly, any individuals or organizations nationwide attending the exploitation of forest resources, from hydropower, mining to tourism, will have to pay service fees and all of the sum will be refunded to forest owners and rangers. Under the draft decree, hydropower plants have to pay service fee of VND20 per kWh commercial power; clean water production and supply establishments have to pay VND40 per cubic meter. For individuals and organizations operating in the forest tourism field, the service fee will be counted from 1 per cent to 2 per cent of revenue. As the draft decree takes effect, it will help to limit the abuse of forest resources and unreasonable usage of forest land.