Payment for forest environmental services

The policy of payment for forest environmental services (PFES) is considered one of the breakthrough policies in forest protection and development because it shifts the approach from relying entirely on the budget to mobilizing non-budgetary capital sources and socialization for sustainable forest management, protection and development, contributing to increasing income and improving the lives of forest growers, managers and protectors. Therefore, the province is always interested in effectively implementing this policy.

Thanks to the DVMTR payment policy, Mr. Trieu Van Xuan's family in Kim Thuong commune, Tan Son district has more conditions to participate in forest protection and development.

Currently, the province has nearly 180,000 hectares of forest and land planned for forest development. Before implementing the policy of payment for forest environmental services, the annual budget from the State to support the provincial forestry sector was limited, so the work of forest protection and development encountered difficulties. Since implementing the policy of payment for forest environmental services, it has shown clear effectiveness.

With the promotion of propaganda, awareness and responsibility in forest protection and development of local Party committees, authorities and people in the province have been raised, and forest areas have been better protected. The management of spending of forest environmental protection funds has been seriously implemented by the community, ensuring democracy, publicity and transparency.

Coming to Kim Thuong commune, Tan Son district, we were surprised to see the green color of the forests here. The commune currently has over 7,600 hectares of forestry land, of which the protective forest area is over 1,100 hectares, special-use forest is nearly 4,000 hectares, and the rest is production forest. In recent years, the awareness and responsibility of forest protection of the people in the commune has been raised, and all households have actively participated in forest protection.

Taking us to visit the forests, Mr. Nguyen Dinh Hoang - Head of Xuan Dai Forest Protection Station said that thanks to the participation of the people in protection, the forests in Kim Thuong and Xuan Dai communes managed by the Station are growing greener and greener. Previously, forest protection, forest fire prevention and fighting in Kim Thuong commune faced many difficulties. The reason was that people's awareness was limited, and illegal forest exploitation still occurred in the commune. When the policy of paying for forest environmental services came into effect, it became a motivation for people to actively care for, protect, prevent and fight forest fires. Thanks to good protection, the forests of the commune are growing greener and greener.

The policy of paying for forest environmental services has attracted a large labor force in the community, especially in remote, isolated and extremely disadvantaged areas, to directly participate in forest protection. Every year, in the province, there are 28 households and groups of households receiving contracts in Xuan Son National Park, Kim Thuong Commune, Tan Son District; Dong Cuu Commune, Thanh Son District; Dai Pham Commune, Ha Hoa District, who benefit from forest environmental services and other benefits from the forest.

To effectively promote the source of funding for forest environmental services, every year, the Provincial Forest Protection Department has advised and implemented the programs and operational plans of the Fund. Carry out the work of acceptance and settlement of forest environmental service payments for forest environmental service providers in the province; coordinate with relevant units to review the forest area providing forest environmental services as a basis for payment of forest environmental services. At the same time, develop programs and projects for replacement forest planting, support for production forest planting, scattered tree planting, landscape forest planting... Open classes to disseminate and train on decrees, circulars, and documents guiding the implementation of the forest environmental service payment policy in the area.

Along with that, every year, the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund strengthens the inspection, supervision, and urging households to step up patrolling and protecting forest areas providing forest environmental services in the area. Through inspection, forest owners have done a good job of accepting, disbursing, and paying forest environmental services to the right subjects, and paying the full amount to households contracted to protect forests according to the approved plan. Every year, the total amount of forest environmental services paid according to the decisions approved by the Provincial People's Committee is about 200 million VND.

The implementation of the policy on payment for forest environmental services in the whole province contributes to improving the effectiveness of forest protection work, people's awareness of forest management and protection, creating more jobs, developing the socio-economy, sustainable poverty reduction, gradually improving and raising people's lives associated with building new rural areas, especially for ethnic minorities in remote, isolated and particularly difficult areas.

Hoang Huong

Source: https://baophutho.vn/chi-tra-dich-vu-moi-truong-rung-217153.htm