Dong Dinh protects the forest - Quang Ninh Electronic Newspaper

Dong Dinh village, Phong Du commune, Tien Yen district is the location chosen by the province to organize the launching ceremony of the Provincial Tree Planting Festival 2025, which took place on February 3. This is a village with a large number of ethnic minorities. In the village, there is a 300-year-old banyan tree that has been recognized as a Vietnam Heritage Tree. In particular, the community forest area of the village has long been well protected and developed. The lives of the villagers are closely linked to the forest, using the forest as a livelihood, forming, preserving and developing cultural features related to the forest.

The launching ceremony of the 2025 provincial tree planting festival in Dong Dinh village, Phong Du commune, Tien Yen district on February 3. Photo: Quang Sinh

According to Phong Du commune's report, Dong Dinh has more than 260 hectares of community forest, under the management and protection of nearly 150 households in the village. In addition, many households in the village are assigned 2-5 hectares of forest to plant production forests. Previously, the lives of Dong Dinh people almost depended on the forest with income from exploiting planted forest timber, exploiting secondary forest products and receiving contracted funding for caring for and protecting natural forest areas. Currently, Dong Dinh has developed more economic models and industries, people have more sources of income, and their lives are more prosperous, but for them, forests are still valuable means of production, and their values are fully promoted.

Mr. Tran Quang Sinh, Secretary and Head of Dong Dinh village, said: Previously, households planting forests in the village mainly planted acacia and cinnamon trees in large quantities and cultivated them in the direction of harvesting, planting densely and with little care. Currently, the level of forest cultivation of the people is better, they plant at the right density, the process of planting and caring for trees includes basal and top dressing, so the trees grow and develop faster. Many acacia forests have been left by the people for 7-10 years before being exploited, cinnamon forests are over 10 years old, becoming large timber forests with much higher value than young exploited forests. Since 2022, according to the orientation of the commune, many households have planted native trees and large timber trees. This year, due to the impact of storm No. 3 Yagy, many of the people's forests were broken, so the people took advantage of this forest planting season to actively replant forests, supplementing the areas lost due to the storm...

Dong Dinh people plant trees at the beginning of the new year 2025.

Particularly for the area of over 260 hectares of community-managed forest, Dong Dinh village established a forest protection management team, built a forest fire fighting force to regularly inspect and protect the forest as well as be ready to prevent fires when there is a risk of fire. From this initiative, over the years, the community forest area of Dong Dinh village has been very well managed and protected, the forest trees have grown green and multi-layered, without forest fires or forest encroachment.

Thanks to effective forest protection and development and promotion of forest economy, Dong Dinh now has no poor households, the village environment is clean and beautiful, the air is fresh. Dong Dinh is moving towards building an advanced new rural village, a model new rural village, striving to become a typical residential area with a large ethnic minority population, developing a forest economy quickly, strongly and sustainably.

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