Protecting forests in the buffer zone of Hoang Lien National Park

Ban Bo Commune (Lai Chau) in the buffer zone of Hoang Lien National Park always focuses on propaganda so that people can properly comply with legal regulations on forest management and protection.

Building firebreaks to prevent forest fires

Nam Phat is a poor village of Ban Bo commune with 100% Mong people, the economy mainly depends on agriculture. Since having money to pay for forest environmental services, people's income is more stable, and awareness of forest protection is also much better than before.

Mrs. Giang Thi Ghenh in Nam Phat village shared: “The commune government propagates that we must protect the forest, so we also have the responsibility to preserve and bring life to the forest. Only when the forest is green can we have water for daily activities, and corn and rice plants can grow with water. Not to mention, the State also supports us with money from protecting and preserving the forest. Thanks to that, many households can buy TVs, motorbikes, refrigerators, etc., and their lives are more stable.”

Forest rangers guide people in clearing vegetation in the buffer zone of Hoang Lien National Park. Photo: Van Tam.

According to the villagers, since understanding the benefits of protecting and developing forests, the phenomenon of cutting down trees and clearing them for fields has stopped.

Previously, the protection and fire prevention in the forest area around the village faced many difficulties due to the limited awareness of the people. People often ate in shacks, slept in fields, and hunted bees with smoke, leading to forest fires. While the profits from these activities were not much, the damage to the forest was huge. However, since the day Nam Phat village established a specialized forest protection team with more than 40 members, the above situation has no longer existed.

Before this dry season, the meeting discussed fire prevention measures and instructed people to protect and develop forests. Immediately after that, together with the forest rangers, the villagers went up the mountain to build firebreaks to prevent forest fires.

Mr. Phan A Nay, Secretary of the Nam Phat village Party Cell, said: “Members of the specialized team regularly coordinate with forest rangers to propagate laws on forest protection, provide guidance on building firebreaks, and how to burn fields to prevent fires from entering the forest. The village also requires households with fields near the forest to burn according to the prescribed time and report to the forest protection team for proper inspection, thereby preventing forest fires.”

Raising awareness through propaganda

Mr. Nguyen Van Trinh, a ranger of Tam Duong Forest Ranger Department, said: “As a ranger assigned to Ban Bo commune, I regularly advise the government to strengthen the Forest Fire Prevention and Control Command Board, develop plans for forest fire prevention and control, strengthen specialized teams, and stay in the area to propagate fire prevention measures. Coordinate patrols and controls to prevent forest fires and forest violations.”

The Party Committee and the commune government signed a commitment to protect the forest, disseminate the law, provide guidance on safety measures when burning fields, and strictly prohibit burning during long hot days. Since the beginning of the year, the commune has organized more than 50 Forestry Law propaganda sessions for 4,800 people. Thanks to this, people's awareness has been raised and the forest has been better protected.

Mr. Nguyen Dinh Thuong, Chairman of the People's Committee of Ban Bo Commune, said: "The commune has a large forest area and is the buffer zone of Hoang Lien National Park, so forest protection is of top concern. The government has completed the steering committee, assigned tasks, developed a fire prevention and control plan at the beginning of the dry season, stepped up patrols, and controlled people entering and exiting to promote and mobilize. Thanks to that, the commune has not had any forest fires for many years."

In addition, the commune continues to implement many solutions, focusing on disseminating laws, strengthening 21 specialized forest protection teams with more than 500 members, assigning tasks, and maintaining 24/7 duty during peak dry days.

Thanks to the consensus of the government and people, Ban Bo forest is increasingly greener and its coverage has increased. The forest not only regulates the climate and provides water but also opens the way for sustainable livelihood development from forest environmental services and forestry economy.

Ban Bo commune has more than 4,113 hectares of forest land, of which natural forest accounts for 3,871 hectares and planted forest 242 hectares; the coverage rate reaches over 40%.

Source: https://nongnghiepmoitruong.vn/giu-rung-o-vung-dem-vuon-quoc-gia-hoang-lien-d784262.html