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Forestry fee pilot programme hailed
Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung wants the policy of payment for forest environmental services pioneered in two highland provinces two years ago quickly extended.
The policy fostered the protection of forests and water resources and mitigated the impact of climate change, he told a conference to assess Prime Ministerial Decision 380 in Ha Noi yesterday.
Decision 380 was the basis for the Pilot Policy for Payment for Forest Environmental Services introduced to north-western Son La Province and the Tay Nguyen (Central Highlands) province of Lam Dong.
"The programme is a social policy as it plays an important part in the national programme of poverty reduction in many poor localities," the deputy prime minister said.
"It has also initiated an effective management mechanism for forest protection."
The deputy prime minister said he now wanted the project replicated at other sites in the two provinces before the Prime Ministerial Decision elegated to be a Government Decree for the system.
Lam Dong and Son La provinces have redefined forest ownership to allow villagers who maintain forests to benefit from the payment of environmental fees.
Seven entities involved in the production of hydro electricity and the supply of water had pledged by last February to pay almost VND235 billion (About $12.3 million), for the environmental services in 2009, the deputy prime minister said.
Lam Dong tourism enterprises had also pledged to pay VND300 million.
Major investor
Deputy Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Hua Duc Nhi told the conference that Viet Nam intended to increase its forests from about 13.1 million hectares now to 16.24 million hectares by 2020.
But as the Government remained the major investor, only about 30-40 per cent of the necessary funds were available.
"Foresters don't have sufficient money to reinvest in their forests and to pay for their essential needs," he said.
"But the society, the community, organisations and individuals who don't participate in either forest protection or reforestation have reaped the benefits generated by the forests.
"So we must do something to compensate and support the foresters."
Payment for forest environmental services was a way to mobilise capital for forest protection and development, he said.
The tourism industry water users and land-and-soil protection services have had to pay environmental fees as part of the two-province pilot projects.
The service fee levied on hydro-electricity generation is VND20 per one commercial kwh and VND40 per one cubic metre of clean water," said the deputy minister.
Tourism enterprises pay a fee equal to 20 per cent of the management fee.
Agriculture Minister Cao Duc Phat said the pilot projects had received positive support from both service recipients and providers.
These included forest owners and foresters.
Lam Dong Provincial People's Committee Deputy Chairman Hoang Sy Son said 80 per cent of the money collected from the fees would be paid to the farmers.
"The policy had reduced the number of poor households by 15 per cent in some places," he said.
Da Nhim Communal People's Committee Deputy Chairman Kon So Ha Vuong, said yearly household income in Lam Dong Province's Lac Duong District had increased from VND 2.3 million to VND 8.35 million.
Asia Regional Biodiversity Conservation Programme Director Jim Peter said the Lam Dong pilot project provided lessons for other countries, including Laos and Cambodia.
Challenges ahead
Although the projects have improved the lives of many households, numerous difficulties and challenges remain.
Lam Dong Provincial People's Committee Deputy Chairman Hoang Sy Son explained more than VND47,000 billion were collected from the fees in 2009.
They were used to pay the 3,342 households and 12 army units who maintain more than 112,000ha of forest.
"But until now there are no specific regulations for households or organisations which fail to live to meet their commitment written in the contracts for forest protection," he said.
Son La Provincial People's Committee Deputy Chairman Cam Van Chinh said a review of forest allocated to either households or organisations was now the major task.
"We need specific instructions from the Government as to the amount of forest that should be allocated to a household or an organisation from as well as an administrative budget," he said.
Da Nhim - Ham Thuan – Da Mi hydro power station Director Nguyen Trong Oanh said his enterprise paid VND24.34 billion for forest environmental services in 2008.
"So we want high-quality services to ensure sufficient water to generate electricity," he said.
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