vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn  

NINH BINH — A Ninh Binh ad hoc work group for tackling illegal logging started functioning on Monday, four weeks after the local media uncovered serious destruction of this northern province’s Kim Son forest.

Tran Huy Giac, deputy director of Ninh Binh People’s Committee office has been named the group’s chairman and Nguyen Tat Tien, deputy director of the province’s State Inspectorate, deputy chairman.

Apart from overseeing the replenishment of destroyed forests in its jurisdiction, the group is authorised to deal with any persons or organisations intending to damage the forest.

In discharging its task of assisting the Ninh Binh People’s Committee chairman deal with deforestation, it is vested the authority to dismiss temporarily any State functionary hindering its work.

It was formed after a reporter with the Tin Tuc (News) newspaper discovered last month that swathes of the Kim Son forest, which is an important buffer against floods, was hacked down to build shrimp farms.

In a flash, at least 150ha had been illegally transformed into shrimp swamps, alleged with secret assistance from some commune leaders in Kim Son District.

With tiger prawn reportedly fetching between VND120,000 and 150,000 per kg in local markets, each ha of swamp is now reportedly offered for sale at VND50 million.

The Ninh Binh Police Department has meanwhile established a 25-member special investigation team led by Le Huu Hung, its deputy chief.

Ninh Binh authorities said they were planning to fill all 154ha of shrimp swamp no later than the end of this month. Soon after the group was set up, at least five people filled their own swamps and voluntarily returned the land to the authorities for fear of tough action by the government.

People charged with destroying upwards of 0.5ha of forest face prosecution under Vietnamese law. — VNS