Vietnam’s urban areas are in urgent need of greenery, forestry expertssaid, citing very low green coverage in most cities in the country, atan average 0.5 sq. m per capita compared to “green urban” standards of10 sq. m.
Statistics of the forestry sector showed the ratio in Hanoi was only 2 sq. m and in Ho Chi Minh City, 3.3 sq. m.
As a result, the environment, particularly air quality, in Vietnamese urban areas is degrading.
On a larger scale, forests across the country also fail to producerequired effect on regulating climate, reducing green house gas andcushioning natural disasters such as flood and landslide, despite anincrease in coverage, the 2013 National Environmental Report said.
The total forest area expanded by 138,461 ha to reach 10,423,844million hectares in 2012, but forest’s quality showed signs ofdegradation. Most of the current forests are classified as economicforest including industrial and paper-material trees, which have littlevalue in terms of ecology.
The acreage of primeval forests,which are mostly in the Central Highlands and Northwestern areas, isshrinking due to deforestation for agriculture development.
Last November, the Prime Minister has approved a master plan ondevelopment of the national special-use forest system through 2020, witha vision to 2030.
Under theplan, the entire special-use forest coverage will be expanded from thecurrent 2.2 million hectares to 2.4 million hectares by 2020.
The 2.4 million ha will cover 34 national parks, 58 nature reserves, and numerous landscapes and research areas.
The northwest region will have 222,000ha of special-use forest,including a new nature reserve at Muong La with an area of 17,000ha,while 400,000ha will be zoned off in the northeast region.
Meanwhile, the Red River Delta will have 65,000ha of protectedforests, aiming to preserve the local ecosystems on lime mountains andwetlands as well as the forests with close connection to the region’sculture, history and landscapes in Hanoi and the provinces of Ninh Binh,Hai Duong and Nam Dinh.-VNA
Statistics of the forestry sector showed the ratio in Hanoi was only 2 sq. m and in Ho Chi Minh City, 3.3 sq. m.
As a result, the environment, particularly air quality, in Vietnamese urban areas is degrading.
On a larger scale, forests across the country also fail to producerequired effect on regulating climate, reducing green house gas andcushioning natural disasters such as flood and landslide, despite anincrease in coverage, the 2013 National Environmental Report said.
The total forest area expanded by 138,461 ha to reach 10,423,844million hectares in 2012, but forest’s quality showed signs ofdegradation. Most of the current forests are classified as economicforest including industrial and paper-material trees, which have littlevalue in terms of ecology.
The acreage of primeval forests,which are mostly in the Central Highlands and Northwestern areas, isshrinking due to deforestation for agriculture development.
Last November, the Prime Minister has approved a master plan ondevelopment of the national special-use forest system through 2020, witha vision to 2030.
Under theplan, the entire special-use forest coverage will be expanded from thecurrent 2.2 million hectares to 2.4 million hectares by 2020.
The 2.4 million ha will cover 34 national parks, 58 nature reserves, and numerous landscapes and research areas.
The northwest region will have 222,000ha of special-use forest,including a new nature reserve at Muong La with an area of 17,000ha,while 400,000ha will be zoned off in the northeast region.
Meanwhile, the Red River Delta will have 65,000ha of protectedforests, aiming to preserve the local ecosystems on lime mountains andwetlands as well as the forests with close connection to the region’sculture, history and landscapes in Hanoi and the provinces of Ninh Binh,Hai Duong and Nam Dinh.-VNA
