Strengthening wildlife protection and biodiversity conservation

Forest rangers discovered three Ha Tinh langurs living in the area of ​​Cha Ly and Se Pu villages, Huong Lap commune, Huong Hoa district - Photo: KLQT

The fauna in the forests and seas of Quang Tri is very rich and diverse, including 89 species of mammals, 260 species of birds, 147 species of amphibians, reptiles and more than 72 species of fish. Among them are many endemic and rare species such as: white-crested blue pheasant, black-crested blue pheasant, money chicken, peacock, crested pheasant, tiger, leopard, bear, gaur, three-striped box turtle... Recently, many new species have been discovered such as saola, large-antlered muntjac, striped rabbit, horned viper, Truong Son viper, black-throated laughingthrush...

In particular, the unique primate fauna of the limestone mountain forest ecosystem has a high biodiversity index in Southeast Asia with over 10 species such as the red-shanked douc langur, large loris, small loris, white-cheeked black langur, Siki black gibbon and many other monkey species. The special-use forest system in Quang Tri province currently has 1,813 plant species belonging to 910 genera, 211 families, with 1,700 species. In particular, in Dakrong Nature Reserve, there are currently 24 plant species listed in the Vietnam Red Book.

However, Quang Tri is also a place for trading and transporting many wild animals and plants from Laos, from the South to the North, as well as activities of exploiting, hunting, trapping, captivity, trading, and illegally buying and selling wild animals and plants in the area and neighboring areas are still taking place. On the other hand, due to the large profits and economic value of wild animals while the number of individuals is increasingly scarce, violations are increasingly sophisticated and unpredictable, making it difficult to fight and prevent.

Therefore, every year, the Provincial Forest Protection Department proactively develops plans and organizes and directs the fight against and prevention of violations of the Law on Forest Protection and Development in the area; strengthens patrols, inspections and control of forest products to prevent illegal trading of forest products during holidays and Tet.

Develop plans and establish inter-sectoral working groups to block hotspots in border areas, National Highway 9, and the Ho Chi Minh Trail to coordinate the fight against forest encroachment and illegal cross-border smuggling of wildlife.

Over the past 6 years, the Quang Tri Forest Protection Department has detected and recorded 4,064 violations in the field of forest protection and forest product management. Of these, 254 were violations of wildlife, 172 were rare animals, weighing 5,107.2 kg.

Through analysis of the summary table of wildlife violations from 2005 to present, it shows that the trend of violations in wildlife trading and transportation has increased over the years, with an average annual increase of 22.91%.

Over the past years, Quang Tri forest rangers have made continuous efforts in all areas to fulfill their tasks, especially in the fight to prevent and control the trade and transportation of wild animals, bringing about positive results.

Thanks to good propaganda work, people's awareness has been raised, demonstrated through coordination and reporting from the masses in the fight against violations of forestry laws in general and wildlife protection in particular. The management of wildlife breeding and captivity has gradually become routine.

Facilities, organizations, households, and individuals that raise wild animals in any form are managed and granted certificates for breeding/growing farms in accordance with the law and monitored by local forest rangers. Although wildlife rescue work is still new, it has gradually gone into depth from initial first aid to long-term rescue.

Every year, the department sends civil servants to attend training courses at leading rescue centers in Vietnam. The fight against forest encroachment is carried out vigorously, the number of violations detected and handled has increased over the years.

Coordination with functional forces to combat, prevent and suppress violations has been well implemented, so there have been no outstanding incidents related to forest management and protection and wildlife protection.

Besides the achieved results, there are still problems that need to be overcome: illegal hunting of wild animals and illegal logging in some areas across the province still occur but have not been completely prevented.

The work of combating, preventing and controlling the situation of wildlife in border areas as well as inland areas is still limited, and the situation of wildlife smuggling across the border is still widespread. There has not been a coordination mechanism with Laos on the work of combating and preventing the trade and transportation of wildlife across the border.

Therefore, it is recommended that the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment and the People's Committee of Quang Tri province develop a coordination regulation on controlling the trade and smuggling of wild animals and plants across the border with Laos. The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment has specific instructions on technical standards stipulating basic conditions for housing for each species to ensure safety and environmental hygiene.

The Forest Protection Department equips rangers with tools to help identify wild animals and forest products without procedures or illegal origins, and organizes training courses on investigation, control, and handling of violations of wildlife trade, and training on management and supervision of breeding farms.

Based on the practical situation in the area, the task of the Quang Tri Forestry Department in the coming time is to continue to promote the dissemination of State regulations on forest protection and wildlife protection in the area widely among the community with many diverse and rich forms.

Implement well the activities of local forest rangers to advise the authorities on forest management and protection at the grassroots level. Organize and implement well the coordination regulations between functional forces in forest protection work in general, and prevent illegal trading and transportation of wild animals and plants in particular.

Strengthen investigation and situational awareness to organize forces to sweep forests of organizations and individuals that destroy forests, and places where illegal wildlife is traded and transported domestically and smuggled across the border.

Resolutely prevent hot spots of forest encroachment and illegal wildlife trade from occurring in the area and closely monitor and inspect wildlife breeding and raising farms in the area.

Tan Nguyen

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/tang-cuong-cong-toc-bao-ve-dong-vat-hoang-da-bao-ton-da-dang-sinh-hoc-193807.htm