VietNamNet Bridge – The Centre of Biodiversity Conservation, GreenViet and the Management Board of Cham Island has inked an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the protection of flora and fauna in the forest of the island.

A corner of forest in the Cham Islands, 20km off the coast of Hoi An City in Quang Nam Province.

The Management Board said the MoU will allow surveying of the current terrestrial plants and animals from next year, building a detailed database and a map of biodiversity of the forests on Cham Islands – a world biosphere reserve recognised by UNESCO in 2009.

The agreement also helps identify endangered species to protect in the future.

The Cham Islands, 20km off the coast of Hoi An City, is home to 1,500ha of tropical forests and 6,700ha of sea featuring a wide range of marine fauna and flora, including many endangered species such as salangane (swallows), the long-tailed monkey and the crab-eating macaque (Macaca fascicularis).

Huong beach on Cham Island is a favourite site for tourists in summer. The Management Board of Cham Island plans to boost protection of flora and fauna in the island’s forests. VNS Photo Cong Thanh

The islands that are home to 1.26sq.km of coral reefs, has been the only location in Viet Nam promoting the non-use of plastic bags and the 3-R (reduce, reuse and recycle) programmes since 2011.

The 3,000 inhabitants of the islands, which include eight islets with vast ecological diversity, hosts around 100,000 tourists annually, of which 10 per cent are foreigners.

The site only offers home-stay services and environmentally friendly energy solutions including wind and solar power.

The Da Nang-based GreenViet group co-operates with the Frankfurt Zoological Society of Germany, the San Diego Zoo Global in the US and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in protecting the primates species in the Sơn Trà Nature Reserve in Da Nang and Kon Tum.

VNS