Many difficulties in planting large timber forests.

(Baonghean) - Planting large timber forests not only brings higher economic benefits to households, but also helps reduce erosion, contributing to environmental protection and combating climate change. The effectiveness of large timber forests compared to small timber forests has been confirmed, but this type of forest has not yet developed to its full potential in Nghe An province.

Double benefit

Currently, the model of planting large timber forests at Song Hieu Forestry Co., Ltd. in the province is developing quite effectively. Mr. Ho Dinh The, Director of Song Hieu Forestry Co., Ltd., said: From 2004-2005, the company planned and planted 2,700 hectares of large timber, and to date, 1,000 hectares have been harvested, with the remaining 1,700 hectares still being harvested. Large timber forests achieve a yield of 140-160 m3 of wood/ha/cycle of 10-11 years, especially those with multi-purpose uses, from laminated timber to wood chips.

Harvesting large timber in Mau Duc commune (Con Cuong).

To ensure high efficiency in planting large timber forests, the company proactively sources high-quality hybrid acacia seedlings. All seedlings used for planting are treated for diseases and pests, and are fertilized and cared for according to proper procedures. Forest planting is carried out according to established procedures and seasonal schedules, with priority given to spring and spring-summer planting to promote faster tree growth.

The company has also invested tens of billions of VND in maintaining and constructing over 250 km of roads to facilitate planting, caring for, and harvesting timber. To ensure a stable market for its products, the company has established partnerships with processing businesses, including the Nam Cam MDF Wood Factory and Thanh Thanh Dat Co., Ltd. Using its own capital, the company annually plants 300-350 hectares of mature timber forests, with an investment of approximately 15-17 million VND per hectare.

In addition, some forestry companies have invested in planting native trees. For example, Con Cuong Forestry Company Limited, in 2002, intercropped hybrid acacia with native large timber trees such as Terminalia catappa and Terminalia chebula on more than 60 hectares in Yen Khe commune and 3 hectares in Luc Da commune.

From 2009 to the present, Con Cuong Forestry Company Limited has also intercropped native Acacia mangium with hybrid acacia on nearly 350 hectares. Acacia mangium is known to be easy to grow, with light wood (classified as group VII), less prone to warping, easy to process, and used for sawing, veneering, making matches, pencils, furniture, clogs, and some office supplies. Acacia mangium trees yield harvests for 18-20 years, providing not only economic value but also environmental benefits.

Why is it difficult to implement?

However, currently, most localities in the province mainly plant and harvest young acacia trees. Mr. Van Hoai from Quynh Tien hamlet, Tam Hop commune (Quy Hop district), shared: "Due to lack of money, we sell acacia trees that are about 4 years old to be chopped into chips. Planting larger timber trees is more valuable, but we need factories to purchase them, sign contracts, and support people with loans during the reforestation process."

The entire Tam Hop commune has approximately over 300 hectares of timber forest, however, most of it is harvested from young acacia trees. Mr. Vi Thanh Tuong - Vice Chairman of the Quy Hop District People's Committee added: The district has over 16,000 hectares of hybrid acacia, the largest in the province, and about 4,000 hectares of acacia trees have reached harvesting age.

People in Tan Ky district are harvesting young acacia trees.

However, many communes are harvesting acacia trees in bulk, even young ones, for sale at prices just over 20 million VND/ha; mature acacia trees fetch prices over 40 million VND/ha. Despite knowing the low prices and the resulting losses, switching from hybrid acacia to other crops is very difficult. This is because most acacia trees are primarily grown on barren, deforested hillsides. The only alternative crop for this type of land is high-yield cassava, but cassava would be difficult to sell as it is not included in the factory's raw material sourcing area.

In some areas, after planting acacia trees, people have proactively switched to planting rubber and sugarcane, but this is very small. The district has proposed that the Nghia Dan Wood and MDF Fiberboard Processing Plant, once completed, should sign agreements with the raw material suppliers to guarantee the purchase of the farmers' products, so that acacia growers do not have to worry about finding buyers.

Mr. Nguyen Ba Thuc, Head of the Agriculture Department of Tan Ky district, said: Tan Ky has over 7,000 hectares of acacia forests for timber production, with more than 1,000 hectares harvested annually. While it is known that large timber forests offer significant economic and environmental benefits, most forest owners currently choose small timber forests instead of large timber forests. The reason is that most forest growers have low incomes and lack the financial resources to pursue the long harvesting cycle for large timber.

Due to low incomes, many forest farmers find it difficult to meet the conditions for obtaining bank loans. Even if they do manage to access loans, the loan amounts are often lower than their investment needs, the loan terms are shorter than the forest business cycle, and the interest rates are high. This forces them to harvest timber only when it meets the requirements for chipping and pulping in order to repay the interest.

To date, the province has over 160,000 hectares of timber forests, with approximately 4,000 hectares of large timber forests concentrated in Nghia Dan, Con Cuong, and Tuong Duong districts. Mr. Nguyen Canh Can, Head of the Nghe An Forestry Planning Survey Team, stated: To ensure long-term large timber development, the provincial forestry planning survey team has completed the "Planning for Large Timber Production and Business Areas in Nghe An Province for the period 2025". This plan includes planting 148,000 hectares of large timber in 18 districts, comprising 19,000 hectares of converted small timber forests, 72,000 hectares of newly planted forests, and 57,000 hectares of replanted forests. Currently, there is basic consensus among forest owners and the People's Committees of districts and communes. The team has submitted the plan to the Provincial People's Committee for review and approval.

However, planting large timber forests remains challenging because it requires at least twice the time for care and protection compared to planting small timber forests. This leads to a longer harvesting and return on investment period, while the people are still facing difficult circumstances and constantly need money to cover their living expenses. Furthermore, obtaining loans for investing in new large timber forest planting is not easy. Although the State has regulations and credit policies to develop forestry, in reality, banks are often hesitant to lend in this sector due to high risks and long repayment periods. This is a significant difficulty for forest planters.

Van Truong