Fires ravage over 2,400 ha of forest in 2016


Fires ravage over 2,400 ha of forest in 2016

06 November 2016

published by http://english.vietnamnet.vn


Vietnam—   So far this year, 181 forest fires occurred in 19 northern provinces, destroying more than 2,400 hectares of forest, heard a recent conference held by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai.

The figures represent a decrease of 97 cases but a rise of nearly 1,900 hectares of damaged forest against the same period last year, Nguyen Quoc Tri, deputy head of the Vietnam Administration of Forestry, said at the November 4 conference, which reviewed forest management in northern provinces in 2016 and put forth tasks for 2017.

There were many big fires which burned down over 100 hectares each, mostly in northwestern provinces. Son La Province had the largest area of forest destroyed by fire (969 ha), followed by Dien Bien Province (919 ha), Ha Giang Province (159 ha) and Yen Bai Province (141 ha), he noted.

Tri blamed the wildfires on prolonged and large-scale hot spells, plus extreme weather events like the severe cold snaps at the beginning of this year.

Participants at the event admitted that forest firefighting in key areas has yet to receive adequate attention, as reflected in a lack of drastic actions to protect forests and strict punishments for violations. Poor equipment and limited personnel are other problems in the work.

Representatives from localities such as Son La, Yen Bai, Tuyen Giang, Phu Tho and Ha Giang proposed improving the efficiency of State management over forest fire prevention and fighting, and mobilising on-the-spot resources.

The Vietnam Administration of Forest urged northern provinces to reduce at least 10 percent of fire cases and area of burned forests in 2017. The provinces were also requested to expand the area of concentrated forests to 80,000 hectares next year, mostly in Son La, Dien Bien and Lai Chau provinces

Government has urged Malawi Defence Force (MDF) soldiers who are deployed to guard Viphya Plantation against destruction to be vigilant by dealing with the perpetrators accordingly.Msaka (left) walking in the plantantion

Msaka (left) walking in the plantantion

Minister of Mines, Energy and Natural Resources, Bright Msaka, made the statement Tuesday after touring the plantation, especially areas under the jurisdiction of Total Land Care and Raiply Malawi Limited.

Incidences of fire destroying numerous hectares of trees every year have been a never-ending song for the Viphya Plantation for over a decade now. The plantation is shared by two districts of Mzimba andNkhata Bay.

However, the issue has raged on in spite of efforts by government and its stakeholders to plant trees and guard them against destruction. Reports have indicated that more often, the fires that destroy the plantation are deliberately set rather than accidental.

The minister said government is aware that some disgruntled workers and individuals whose licences were cancelled are the ones setting fires in the plantation.

“People need to know that this is a national asset, so if the department of forestry has denied somebody a licence for the reasons best known by the department, they are supposed to understand instead of setting fires,” he said.

To mitigate the challenge, Msaka said government deployed MDF soldiers in protected forests across the country as a way of scaring people from destroying the plantations.

In spite of the effort, some people are still setting parts of the Viphya Forest on fire, regardless of the size of trees.

“We have directed the Malawi Defence Force solders to deal with anyone setting bush fires and operating in the forest without licences and that the law will take its course [against them],” he warned.

However, Msaka commended Raiply Malawi Limited and Total Land Care for utilizing the forest sustainably and adding value to the trees from the forest.

“In the past, we have been cutting trees or sawing and selling them abroad at a very cheap price. We behaved like a prodigal son who squandered all what his father gave him.

“We need to be very careful and be proud of what we inherited so that we can benefit from it and pass on those benefits to the next generation,” advised the minister.

Earlier, Chief Executive Officer of Raiply Malawi Limited, Thomas Oomen, cited bush fires and encroachment as major challenges facing his company.

“This year alone, we have lost about 526 hectares [of trees] to bush fires, unfortunately, most of  these trees are below 15 years old but they are supposed to be harvested at the age of 25. This is dooming our future,” said Oomen.

Chikangawa Forest consists of seven plantations comprising 53,000 hectares.

– See more at: http://www.nyasatimes.com/minister-msaka-warns-perpetrators-fire-viphya-forest/#sthash.5gaV0MIe.dpuf


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