Accelerate the development of standardized agricultural and forestry raw material areas.

Quang Tri is one of 13 provinces nationwide that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (now the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment) prioritized for the implementation of the pilot project to build standardized agricultural and forestry raw material areas for domestic consumption and export in the 2022-2025 period (the Project). Over the past two years, the province has focused on implementing the construction of standardized agricultural raw material areas for domestic consumption and export through various solutions.

Phu Hung Cooperative, Hai Phu commune, Hai Lang district, is a leading unit in FSC-certified forest planting - Photo: BAO BINH

The objective of the Project is to establish a concentrated, commercially-scale, sustainably certified plantation timber production area based on linkages between forest growers, cooperatives, and timber processing and export businesses, in order to promote the rapid, effective, and sustainable restructuring of the agricultural sector and the construction of new rural areas in the province.

Enhancing the role and effectiveness of agricultural and forestry cooperatives in the certified plantation timber value chain will create momentum for the formation of a sustainable plantation product linkage chain between cooperatives and businesses.

In implementing the pilot project, the province aims to establish a FSC-certified plantation timber raw material area in 5 districts: Hai Lang, Trieu Phong, Cam Lo, Gio Linh, and Vinh Linh, reaching a total area of ​​5,000 hectares by 2025. The average percentage of large timber in the participating timber harvesting areas with a diameter of over 15cm will reach 60%.

The total planned area for planting large timber trees in the province is 13,000 hectares. Of this, Hai Lang, Cam Lo, and Trieu Phong districts account for 8,000 hectares, and Gio Linh and Vinh Linh districts account for 5,000 hectares. To date, the area planted with large timber trees has reached 4,250.6/5,000 hectares, and 13,799 hectares have been converted from small timber to large timber production.

Regarding investment in transportation infrastructure, the Department of Agriculture and Environment, in coordination with the management boards of agricultural projects and local authorities, has completed the construction and handover of 5 forestry roads with a total length of 14.48 km.

These routes include: Thuy Ba Tay Cooperative (Vinh Thuy commune, Vinh Linh district) 2.84 km long; Giang Xuan Hai Cooperative (Trung Son commune, Gio Linh district) 2.2 km long; Ha Xa Cooperative (Trieu Ai commune, Trieu Phong district) 4.02 km long; Phu Hung Cooperative (Hai Phu commune, Hai Lang district) 3.35 km long and Cam Nghia Cooperative (Cam Nghia commune, Cam Lo district) 2.07 km long.

The Thuy Ba Tay Agricultural Production and Service Cooperative (Thuy Ba Tay Cooperative), located in Vinh Thuy commune, has been selected as the site for constructing a timber storage yard along the route connecting the timber plantation areas of Vinh Linh district. The Provincial People's Committee has issued a decision allowing the Thuy Ba Tay Cooperative to lease land for production forest purposes, and is currently awaiting the Provincial People's Committee to issue a land use right certificate. The Cooperative has already cleared 3,000 ^m² of land, ready for investment in the timber storage yard.

Nguyen Van Lam, Chairman and Director of Thuy Ba Tay Cooperative, said: “The total planted forest area in Vinh Thuy commune is currently about 1,300 hectares, with Thuy Ba Tay Cooperative alone having about 33 hectares. The construction of timber collection yards along the road connecting the forest plantation raw material areas of the district aims to create a synchronized infrastructure, serving the collection, preservation, and processing of timber more efficiently. In addition, the timber collection yards contribute to promoting linkages between cooperatives, businesses, and forest growers, creating a sustainable value chain in the forestry industry.”

In the southern part of the province, the Phu Hung Agricultural Production and Service Cooperative (Phu Hung Cooperative), Hai Phu commune, Hai Lang district, received a land allocation decision from the Trieu Hai District People's Committee according to Decision No. 10/QD dated January 1, 1983. The land for which the land allocation is requested is currently production forest land, and the cooperative has cleared an area of ​​3,000 m2 (the location for constructing a timber storage yard).

Currently, the cooperative is carrying out the procedures for surveying and mapping and requesting the Provincial People's Committee to issue a land use right certificate to continue with the next steps. Le Van The, Director of Phu Hung Cooperative, expressed his hope that the procedures would be expedited so that the timber storage yard could be implemented soon, minimizing transportation costs.

Explaining why the project has reached its final year but some important items have yet to be invested in, such as the two timber collection yards in Phu Hung and Thuy Ba Tay cooperatives, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment Nguyen Hong Phuong said: Before the issuance of Government Decree No. 91/2024/ND-CP dated July 18, 2024, amending and supplementing some articles of Government Decree 156/2018/ND-CP detailing the implementation of some articles of the Forestry Law, the requirement to change the land use purpose of forest land to other purposes when implementing timber collection yards was not clearly guided.

Therefore, the legal status of the projects, despite having land use plans, cannot be implemented because the area designated for the projects is production forest land. Currently, according to Clause 24, Article 1 of Decree No. 91/2024/ND-CP dated July 18, 2024, for infrastructure projects serving forest protection and development as stipulated in Clauses 1, 2, 3, and 4 of Article 51 of the Forestry Law, the procedure for deciding on the policy to change the purpose of forest land use to other purposes is not required. Thus, the implementation of the timber collection yard project will be more convenient because it does not require the procedure of changing the purpose of forest land use to other purposes.

To continue implementing the Project effectively, the province needs to focus on resolving legal difficulties related to land, creating favorable conditions, and providing support for land for infrastructure investment for the cooperatives selected to implement the Project.

Focus on completing infrastructure projects in raw material areas, providing training and capacity building for cooperatives; advising and supporting cooperatives in expanding their scale and improving the efficiency of their production and business operations.

At the same time, it is necessary to promote the role of community agricultural extension groups, trade promotion and product brand development, application of information technology and digital transformation, and adoption of advanced production processes...

On the other hand, mechanisms and policies are needed to attract businesses to invest in developing raw material areas and linking with cooperatives and farmers along the value chain to maximize the effectiveness of the Project.

Aquarius

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/day-nhanh-viec-xay-dung-vung-nguyen-lieu-nong-lam-san-dat-chuan-192997.htm