The Lam Dong Province People's Committee on Sunday unveiled a plan for the "Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions through efforts to reduce deforestation and forest degradation, sustainable management of forest resources, conservation and enhancement of forest carbon stocks" to be implemented through 2020.
Its main targets are to increase the province's forest cover and reduce carbon emissions by 2 million tonnes a year, equal to 27 per cent of the emissions by the forestry sector.
To achieve the targets, the Tay Nguyen (Central Highlands) province will adjust the zoning of three types of forests – special use, protective and production.
It will also limit switching of special use and protective forests to other purposes.
Priority will be given for allocating forest areas to ethnic households, poor households without land and local communities to protect.
The province will replant forests and afforest barren lands and lands where commercial plants had been grown.
This year, for instance, Dam Rong, Lam Ha, Lac Duong and Da Hoai districts will grow 260ha of forest on barren land.
In 2016-20 the province will plant an average of 1,070ha of forests a year on barren lands.
It will also provide companies that protect forests with financial and technical assistance to manage the forests.
The plan, to cost around VND1.75 trillion (US$83 million), features several support activities to improve the livelihoods of families living near forests to reduce their exploitation of the forests.
The activities include helping them improve their crops and providing them loans.
Lam Dong has a total area 977,219ha. Of this, more than 596,600ha has been zoned off for forests.
The forests play an important role in protecting the environment and regulating water resources from rivers, springs, lakes in the province and the rest of the region.