The protective forest in Quang Ninh Province has been destroyed for a long time while local authorities have claimed they are unaware of the situation.

The protective forest in Quang Ninh Province has been destroyed for a long time

The routes outside of Chan Ho Village, Dong Trieu Town is covered in trees but in Chan Ho Village, the forest has been largely destroyed or burnt down. Small paths which, according to the locals, are used to transfer timber can be seen everywhere.

The deforestation is even more severe in the adjacent Tan Tien Village. Many hills around the village are completely cleared of trees. The majority of the area has been abandoned and the soil gradually lost nutrients while tree-replanting is rarely seen.

According to the locals, deforestation has happened for a long time and they have lost hundreds of hectares of trees. The timber is often sold to wood chip processing facilities, brick and coal suppliers. A cubic metre of wood costs only a few hundred thousand VND so a hectare of forest cost millions of VND.

Dong Trieu Commune Forest Ranger Unit said both natural and planted woodland in Chan Ho and Tan Tien villages were managed by the Dong Trieu Forestry Company. The forests were then allocated to seven people to plant trees that would later be used for mining work. 35.8 hectares of protective forest is in Tan Tien Village while the protective forest in Chan Ho is scattered within plantations.

Head of Dong Trieu Commune Forest Ranger Unit said on June 25 that local people were only removing old trees for new, more productive varieties. However, he admitted that it was illegal if trees in protective forests were removed without permission from the forest ranger units.

Dtinews