Safeguarding Southern Lam Dong's Green Lung

Mobilizing Local Communities to Protect Forests

The southern region of Lam Dong features extensive forests bordering residential communities and agricultural land, including those managed by the Tanh Linh Protection Forest Management Board.

Formed by merging the formerLa Nga and Tri An Protection Forest Management Boards, the board became responsible for managing 43 forest compartments covering 30,357 hectares of forest and forestry land The area comprises over 12,253 hectares designated as protection forest and more than 18,104 hectares classified as production forest in the communes of Nghi Duc, Bac Ruong, and Dong Kho.

The board has long recognized that forest protection, reforestation, sustainable forest management, and ecosystem restoration are essential priorities. However, effective forest conservation cannot depend only on trained forest rangers. To enhance protection initiatives, the board has been promoting the involvement of local communities in forest preservation—this strategy has become a fundamental aspect of sustainable forest management.

So far, approximately 11,745 hectares of forest have been assigned to 392 families residing nearby for protection. This initiative not only generates additional income for local households but also links their livelihoods to the responsibility of safeguarding forest resources. Numerous community members have taken on the role of the frontline defenders, assisting in identifying and reporting illegal logging activities and encroachment on forest lands.

Additionally, collaboration among forest owners, rangers, law enforcement, and local officials has been sustained through frequent joint patrols in areas at high risk, allowing for the prompt detection and handling of forestry law violations.

Since 2021, officials have recorded 47 violations of forestry laws in the forests overseen by the board and have referred the cases to the appropriate agencies for legal proceedings. These included 26 instances of illegal logging, 11 instances of forest destruction, and 10 instances of unlawful encroachment on forest land. The majority of these violations were minor in scale and were handled in accordance with the law, which helped prevent persistent hotspots from emerging.

Committed to Preserving Forests

Despite these encouraging outcomes, the Tanh Linh Protection Forest Management Board recognizes that there are still considerable obstacles in forest management and protection efforts.

With a small workforce responsible for managing more than 30,300 hectares of forest and forestry land, the board faces considerable challenges in conducting regular, thorough patrols across difficult terrain.

Moreover, the majority of personnel working on the front lines of forest protection are contract employees, and their relatively low wages make it challenging to attract and retain experienced staff. Pressure also persists as some local residents continue to depend on forest resources for their livelihoods.

In spite of these obstacles, Nguyen Van Tuyen, who leads the Tanh Linh Protection Forest Management Board, expressed that the board is dedicated to safeguarding every hectare of forest it oversees. Looking ahead, it plans to modernize forest management by increasing the use of digital technologies, employing digital mapping, and implementing satellite-based systems for forest monitoring to enhance the early identification of threats.

Enhancing collaboration among forest owners, forest rangers, police, local authorities, and adjacent communities will remain a primary focus in order to improve management efficacy.

Safeguarding the forests at the southern entrance to Lam Dong isn't just the duty of forest management agencies. It requires a collective effort from government bodies, local communities and the public.

By protecting these forests, the province not only maintains essential natural resources but also enhances climate resilience, creating a strong foundation for green economic growth and sustainable development.