Projects with poor reforestation performance face licence revoke

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai has urged the Ministries of Industry & Trade, and Agriculture & Rural Development to keep a close eye on forest planting in land converted for hydropower projects and revoke the licences of projects that fail to reforest.

Speaking at a teleconference on November 12, the Deputy PM said ministries and localities should consider reforestation before approving new projects while asking investors to make plans for planting alternative forests.

Deputy PM Hai, who is also Head of the National Steering Committee for Forest Protection and Development Plan for 2011-2015, asked localities to push investors to finance forest protection and development.

Meanwhile, it is necessary to promote communication campaigns on replanting forests among the community, he added.

According to the Forestry Department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, as of September 30, the country had 67,750 hectares of forests needing replanting, including 17,840 hectares converted to hydropower projects, but only 15,959 hectares of forest had been completed, equivalent to 23.6 percent.

This year, 23,300 hectares of forest are expected to be planted. However, only 8,089 hectares have been covered in 23 out of 50 localities, equivalent to only 36 percent of the yearly target.

Until the end of this year, localities are predicted to plant total 11,660 hectares of forests, fulfilling only 52.3 percent of the yearly target.

A number of localities with large bald areas that failed to complete reforestation included Thua Thien-Hue, Cao Bang, Khanh Hoa, Binh Thuan, Phu Yen, Lang Son, Binh Phuoc, Kon Tum and Gia Lai.

At the conference, ministries and localities voiced difficulties faced in replanting forests in areas converted for other projects, including slow allocation of investor capital and shortcomings in forest management and planting.

Event participants also pointed to unreasonable capital disbursement for the initiative.-VNA