Localities proactively plan forest fire prevention and fighting

BTO-This afternoon (May 5), at the headquarters of the Kon Tum Provincial People's Committee, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang chaired a conference on forest management and protection and forest fire prevention and fighting in 2023 and the first 4 months of 2024.

The conference was held in person and online to provinces and centrally-run cities (except for 3 provinces without forests: Can Tho, Hung Yen, Vinh Long). At the Binh Thuan bridge, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Hong Hai chaired, with the participation of a number of related departments, branches and sectors.

*Bridge point at Binh Thuan Provincial People's Committee.*

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the total forest area of the country is 14,860,309 hectares (10,129,751 hectares of natural forest and 4,730,557 hectares of planted forest). The national forest coverage rate is 42.02%. In 2023, authorities detected 3,327 violations affecting forests nationwide, a decrease of 597 cases compared to the same period in 2022.

In the first 4 months of 2024 alone , authorities discovered 650 cases of deforestation, the affected area was 182.2 hectares, a decrease of 75.7 hectares; 89 forest fires occurred with a preliminary estimated affected forest area of about 498 hectares...

In general, the number of violations of the law on forest protection and management has decreased over the years. However, deforestation and illegal logging still occur frequently in some key areas, border areas between provinces, especially in the Central Highlands and the Southeast. The main causes are the need to reclaim land for agricultural production, shifting cultivation practices, and the need to exploit wood for housing.

In Binh Thuan, the total forest area in the province is 342,127.58 ha, of which natural forest is 296,915 ha and planted forest is 45,212 ha. The forest cover rate in the province is 43.08%.
In 2023, the forest protection management force detected and recorded 289 violations of the Forestry Law and handled 217 administrative violations .

In the first 4 months of 2024, the forest protection management force in the whole province proactively detected and recorded 136 violations of the Forestry Law, handled 85 administrative violations; confiscated forest products included 105.66 m3 ^of various types of wood...

In particular, from the beginning of 2024 until now, the whole province has had 20 cases of vegetation fires under the forest canopy with an area of 29.54 hectares.

*Dry season forests are at very high risk of fire.*

According to the assessment of the Provincial People's Committee, thanks to the proactive participation of all levels from the province, district, commune, forest owners and the good implementation of measures, there have been no forest fires causing major damage since 2023. Most of the forest fires, after being warned and reported, were promptly extinguished by forest owners, forest rangers and local authorities.

*Ethnic minorities participate in contracting and protecting forests.*

After listening to opinions from several localities and ministries, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang assessed that people's awareness of forest management and protection has improved. However, there are still many obstacles, pressure from migration and farming practices. Meanwhile, resources and conditions for forest management and protection have not yet met the demand.
The Deputy Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to coordinate with localities and ministries to complete relevant decrees and review, propose supplements and perfect policies and mechanisms on sustainable forestry development and promoting forest biodiversity.

In addition, relevant ministries and branches direct the work of weather forecasting as best as possible. Along with that, strengthen propaganda to the people about forest fire prevention... In particular, localities proactively plan and implement forest fire prevention and fighting measures during the peak dry months. At the same time, pay attention to caring for and improving the lives of forest protection forces, improving the lives of ethnic minorities living near forests...

It is known that on the same morning, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang surveyed and worked with the Management Board of Chu Mom Ray National Park, Kon Tum province on forest management, protection and fire prevention.

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