Authorities and resident in central Quảng Bình Province have voiced concerns over serious deforestation to a natural forest area upstream of the Rào Nan River. — Photo enternews.vn

QUẢNG BÌNH — Authorities and resident in central Quảng Bình Province have voiced concerns over serious deforestation to a natural forest area upstream of the Rào Nan River.

Chairman of Quảng Sơn Commune People’s Committee, Mai Trung Kiên, said that the destroyed areas were important because the Rào Nan River provided water for 50,000 people and farming production to 10 local communes in Tuyên Hóa District. 

Deforestation would affect the water supply to these 50,000 people.

Additionally, local authorities struggled to manage the forest because the area was disputed between Quảng Sơn and Văn Hóa communes.

Quảng Sơn People’s Committee Chairman blamed the issue on an incorrect boundary map that land officials had created in the past.

Chairman of Văn Hóa Commune People’s Committee Đinh Xuân Thương said those who were felling the trees were not the members of local households, instead they were wood traders who purchased land from residents to destroy natural forest and plant keo trees.

Tiền Phong ( Vanguard ) newspaper reporters witnessed a large natural forest in Chay Village of Quảng Sơn Commune destroyed, with all trees with diameter from 20cm-50cm chopped down.

A local resident said the trees were chopped down two months ago; groups of forest rangers carrying modern equipment destroyed the forest quickly.

Hoàng Minh Đề, chairman of Tuyên Hóa District People’s Committee, said his office received a report from Văn Hóa Commune authorities saying the natural forest area, adjacent to Quảng Sơn Commune, was allocated to 40 local households.

But five wood traders have been purchasing land from these households and at present, they grow keo trees on 40ha out of 70ha forest land they purchased.

The real destroyed forest acreage is bigger than local authorities report, according to forest rangers.  

Trần Xuân Hảo, Director of Quảng Bình Province’s Agricultural-Forestry Design & Re-planning Centre said his office would examine the allocation of Văn Hóa Commune forest land.  

He said the centre had proposed a project to convert the natural forest to a production forest model following Văn Hóa Commune authorities’ requirements. — VNS