Managing and protecting heritage forests.

QTO - Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park is an area with high biodiversity, preserving many endemic and rare animal and plant species listed in the Vietnam Red Book and the IUCN Red Book. In the context of increasing pressure on forest resources, strengthening coordination among functional forces, local authorities, and the community is becoming a key solution to preserving the greenness of the forest.

According to Nguyen Nam Dinh, head of the Thuong Trach Forest Protection Station ( World Heritage and Conservation Center), the station is tasked with managing over 13,357 hectares of forest, including 16 sub-areas and 100 plots, within the administrative boundaries of Thuong Trach commune. With such a large and extensive area of ​​special-use forest under its management, located within the strictly protected zone of the National Park, forest management and protection efforts face numerous challenges.

Furthermore, most of the station's forest protection patrol routes are located in mountainous, rugged terrain with steep slopes, prone to landslides during the rainy season, and can last for many days in the forest. At the same time, the inhabitants are mainly ethnic minorities with low levels of education, whose livelihoods depend on forest resources and slash-and-burn agriculture. Therefore, coordination between forest protection and other units and forces stationed in the area is always a top priority.

“Over the past period, the coordination of forest protection between the station and functional forces such as the Forest Ranger Force, the Police, the Border Guard, and local authorities has achieved many positive results, contributing to improving the effectiveness of forest management and protection. Since the beginning of the year, the station has coordinated with these forces to organize many legal awareness sessions on forest protection; forest fire prevention and control; and biodiversity conservation for hundreds of people in villages in the area, and at the same time organized dozens of patrols and inspections of forest protection in the assigned forest area,” Mr. Nguyen Nam Dinh added.

Authorities coordinate patrols to protect the forest - Photo: NH

Lieutenant Colonel Tran Xuan Quang, Deputy Commander of Con Roang Border Guard Station (Quang Tri Provincial Border Guard Command), said that the unit is stationed in Thuong Trach commune, in the core area of ​​Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park. Over the years, along with the task of protecting national sovereignty and border security, officers and soldiers of Con Roang Border Guard Station have closely coordinated with local Party committees and authorities to support the people in developing the economy and improving their living standards.

"The unit has always considered coordinating forest protection with the Center for Forest Protection and World Heritage as an important task. In addition, the unit also coordinates forest patrols in key, high-risk areas, thereby promptly detecting and preventing acts of forest encroachment in the core area of ​​Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park," Lieutenant Colonel Tran Xuan Quang added.

According to Pham Van Tan, Director of the Center for Forest Protection and World Heritage (Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park Management Board), the unit is responsible for managing and protecting over 123,300 hectares of special-use forests and over 3,153 hectares of protection forests. The current state of forest resources in the area largely consists of rich and medium-density forests. This is also an area with high biodiversity, preserving many endemic, rare, and precious plant and animal species listed in the Vietnam Red Book and the IUCN Red Book.

Recently, the Center for Forest Protection and World Heritage organized the signing of a cooperation agreement with various forces, including: commune police, border guard posts, and local forest protection units, to strengthen forest management, protection, fire prevention and control, and to detect, combat, prevent, and handle violations of forestry laws.