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Lai Chau plans to green more areas

LAI CHAU — The northern mountainous province of Lai Chau will implement a major forest development project over the next 10 years, aiming to raise the forest cover to 52.1 per cent of the total provincial area.

Located at the head of three big rivers – the Da, Ma and Cuu Long (Mekong) – forest development is always an urgent task within the province.

"Implementing this project will not only protect the biological environment, but will also maintain and regulate the river currents, which, in turn, reduce the effects of flooding. This is vital for the 23 peoples living in the province," said the deputy head of the provincial Forest Management Department, Vu Hong Bai.

Lai Chau is the main medicinal herb supplier for the northern provinces.

The province also has many species of rare forest animals.

Lai Chau Province has an ideal climate to develop substantial forests, and to develop material sources for the processing industry.

The province plans to increase the forest coverage to 720,760ha by 2005.

The forest is expected to cover 881,492ha by 2010, or, 52.1 per cent of the provincial area.

The project for the period of 2001 to 2010 will have four main targets, including environmental protection; economic development; social safety and national defence-security maintenance.

The scheme will create jobs for 100,000 labourers. It is hoped that if there is plentiful employment, people might not destroy areas of forest to create farm land.

Two projects are being implemented in the Muong Phang historical site in Dien Bien District, and Huoi Pha botanical garden in Dien Bien Phu Township.

Two other projects being also approved by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, include a Muong Nhe natural preservation area in Muong Te District and a Hoang Lien Son natural preservation area in Phong Tho District.

The province has planned seven projects for the Da River area, three for the Ma River area and two projects to be based in the Cuu Long Basin.

Lai Chau has four projects planned for the development of production, including a project to build a bamboo-shoot processing plant in Dien Bien Phu Township; and a project for growing forests to supply materials for a paper mill in Lai Chau Township.

The third project will be implemented between 2002 and 2004, and will construct a wood processing plant in Tuan Giao District.

The fourth project will be based in Binh Luu Commune of Phong Tho District, aiming to grow trees which can be used as mine-support rafters.

Although Lai Chau has an abundant labour source, the skills of the labourers still need significant development.

The provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is zoning and allocating forestry land to organisations, households and individuals which they must use for forestry development programmes.

The department has proposed that the provincial People’s Committee clearly map out farming land and forestry land, and establish landmarks for each kind of forest, including forests for special use, forests to prevent floods and landslides, and forests for production.

It has also proposed that the State allocate funds to the scheme, which will be used to instigate new projects, as well as to increase the wages of residents who manage the forests. — VNS

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