Forestry officials are working to prevent illegal logging hotspots in
the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai by raising the role
of citizens.
According to statistics, the northern mountainous
province has nearly 186,000 hectares of forest. The province has managed
to bring forest coverage area from 18.2 percent in 1991 to 51.3 percent
as of May 2013.
According to Nguyen Van Vui, head of the Lao Cai
Bureau on Forest Protection, forestry officials have been also working
to raise awareness of local residents on limiting farming practices that
pose risks to the forest, such as slash-and-burn or wood burning to get
charcoal.
The provincial people’s committee has agreed to
provide allowances for residents at the local level who are involved
frequently in forestry protection.-VNA