Thua Thien - Hue pays more than 37 billion VND to reduce greenhouse gas emissions

On the afternoon of December 14, the Thua Thien - Hue Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund held a conference to deploy the Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Payment Plan (ERPA) in the province in 2023.

*Conference on implementing the Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Payment Plan (ERPA) in Thua Thien - Hue province in 2023*

Mr. Nguyen Tat Tung, Director of the Forest Protection and Development Fund of Thua Thien - Hue province, said that implementing ERPA payments will create additional financial resources for the forestry sector to directly invest in forests, form a domestic carbon market and participate in the world carbon market, helping to increase income for forest owners, people and businesses through the results of reducing emissions, improving productivity, forest quality, ecological value of forests, and improving sustainable livelihoods.

In addition, it helps raise awareness of stakeholders about the value of forest carbon services, improve the effectiveness of forest management, protection and development of localities and forest owners. Furthermore, implementing ERPA will contribute to protecting existing forest areas and increasing forest cover, mitigating the impacts of climate change; thereby, creating a large additional source of funding for forest management and protection and supporting livelihood development for people living in close contact with forests. This is also an important source of funding to help communities, individuals and households improve their lives, maintain forest management and protection, contribute to improving forest quality and carbon stocks, contribute to the national emission reduction target and limit global climate change.

“The source of payment for emission reduction has become a very meaningful financial source, contributing to the implementation of the province's orientation goals; with the criteria of creating a green and clean natural environment while contributing to improving the lives of people in mountainous districts, including helping to soon help the highland district of A Luoi escape poverty,” said Mr. Tung.

Accordingly, based on Decision No. 641/QD-BNN-TCLN dated February 21, 2023 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on Promulgating the Benefit Sharing Plan from the Agreement on Payment for Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction in the North Central Region and Plan No. 393/KH-UBND dated November 30, 2023 of the People's Committee of Thua Thien - Hue Province on the 2023 Financial Plan for revenue from the Agreement on Payment for Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction in the North Central Region in the province, revenue from emission reduction results is divided into 3 periods corresponding to the period from 2023 to 2025.

*In 2023, Thua Thien - Hue province will make payments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for 800 forest owners.*

Based on the area of natural forests according to the results of annual forest investigation and inventory and the results of emission reduction absorption of natural forests in the province, the amount of money the Central Fund will coordinate for Thua Thien - Hue province in 3 years (2023 - 2025) is about 5.609 million USD (equivalent to 131 billion VND). Of which, in 2023, the province will coordinate more than 37 billion VND to make payments through bank accounts or public postal service providers for 800 forest owners, including 721 forest owners who are communities, groups of households, households, 11 forest owners who are organizations, 58 commune People's Committees and 10 other organizations with natural forests; after deducting management costs (5%), the remaining amount (95%) to make payments to beneficiaries is more than 35.7 billion VND.

The conference discussed and proposed a number of solutions to carry out key tasks and implementation orientations to effectively pay for emission reduction results, to the right subjects, and in accordance with regulations; at the same time, creating a premise for smooth implementation, as well as developing potential projects and programs on carbon absorption and storage in the future.

Thua Thien - Hue is one of 6 provinces in the North Central region participating in the ERPA pilot with the World Bank (WB). This is a results-based emission reduction payment activity, moving towards comprehensive implementation of environmental services according to regulations...

The entire Thua Thien - Hue province currently has 305,560.09 hectares of forested land (including 205,602.31 hectares of natural forest; 77,148.32 hectares of planted forest; and 22,809.46 hectares of planted area that has not yet become forest). The forest coverage rate of the entire province is currently 57.15%.

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