Pilot payment for forest environmental services for industrial production establishments

(Baonghean) - After nearly 5 years of implementation, the policy of paying for forest environmental services has been affirmed as the right direction, gradually entering life, creating a new financial resource outside the budget, with stability and sustainability, serving the work of forest management, protection and development.

Thereby, contributing to creating more jobs, improving livelihoods, increasing income, and improving the lives of forest workers and ethnic minorities in mountainous areas.

The Forest Protection and Development Fund regularly follows the plan, seriously implements the direction of superior agencies, deploys many measures to expand revenue sources, strengthens urging, signs contracts to entrust declaration and payment of forest environmental services to the fund (by December 31, 2015, facilities using forest environmental services in Nghe An province have declared and paid in full to the fund, with no outstanding debts).

This is a positive signal, demonstrating the responsibility of the facilities using forest environmental services in implementing the state's policies. The negotiation and signing of the entrustment contract for facilities using forest environmental services (currently operating) in Nghe An province has been completed.

Specifically: The BVPTR Fund has directly signed trust contracts with 15 facilities using forest environmental services, including: 10 hydropower production facilities and 5 clean water production and supply facilities. In addition, the BVPTR Fund regularly reviews to expand revenue sources, especially facilities using forest environmental services that are under construction to promote and negotiate to sign trust contracts when those facilities come into operation.

Nam Nhong people (Que Phong) happily received hybrid acacia seedlings to green bare hills.

The results of mobilizing revenue sources have increased steadily over the years. The total accumulated revenue up to December 31, 2015 was 240,998 million VND (accounting for 5% of the country). By April 30, 2016, the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund had disbursed 174,098 million VND.

However, after 5 years of implementation, the policy of payment for forest environmental services in Nghe An has only 2 groups of subjects making payments for forest environmental services, including: hydropower production facilities and clean water production and supply facilities. Many production facilities, especially industrial and service production facilities in the area that directly use water sources, have not yet implemented the policy of payment for forest environmental services. This is causing inconsistencies in policy implementation and inequality among production facilities using water sources in the area.

In order to contribute to sustainable development, effectively implement the Party's policies and the State's laws, increase financial resources for localities in forest management, protection and development, and improve the effectiveness of the policy on payment for forest environmental services, on June 27, 2016, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development issued a document directing the implementation of research and application of the policy on payment for forest environmental services for industrial production establishments that use water directly from water sources as prescribed in Decree No. 99/2010 of the Government.

Workers operate a cutting machine to shape the wooden panel line at Nghe An Wood Processing Factory

Pursuant to the provisions of law and Official Dispatch No. 5337/BNN-TCLN of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, on October 13, 2016, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development submitted a document requesting the Provincial People's Committee to approve the task outline, report, and pilot study on payment for forest environmental services for industrial production establishments that directly use water sources.

With the objective: To research, develop and propose a payment mechanism for forest environmental services in the industrial production sector in Nghe An province, on that basis, to develop a plan to pilot the payment for forest environmental services for industrial production establishments that use water directly from water sources, contributing to the implementation of Decree No. 99/2010/ND-CP dated September 24, 2010 of the Government on the payment policy for forest environmental services.

Accordingly, the Provincial People's Committee will establish a consulting group to assign relevant departments and branches to implement. In which, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is responsible for directing the Forest Protection and Development Fund to coordinate with the consulting group and relevant departments and branches to effectively carry out the task of developing a technical report including the following contents: Overview of payment for forest environmental services in industrial production such as the potential and feasibility of implementing the policy on payment for forest environmental services in the industrial production sector; options on collection levels, collection mechanisms, estimated total amount collected (according to proposed options) and management and use mechanisms for collected amounts; potential economic and social impacts of implementing the policy on payment for forest environmental services; Plan on piloting the payment mechanism for forest environmental services in the industrial production sector; Advise the Nghe An Provincial People's Committee to issue a decision on piloting the payment mechanism for forest environmental services in the industrial production sector.

German experts discuss with engineers the MDF line operation process at the central control room of the Factory

The expected implementation period is from now until the end of February 2017. The research subjects include: Industrial production establishments that use water directly from water sources in Nghe An province; Some forest owners providing water source maintenance and regulation services for industrial production; Some customers consuming industrial products in the province.

To implement the above contents, the General Department of Forestry and the Vietnam Forest Protection and Development Fund coordinate to propose the VFD Project to fund related activities; Support information and research orientation for the consulting group; organize relevant seminars and consultation meetings; Participate in contributing opinions to reports and documents developed by the consulting group...

In addition, the Forest and Delta Project (VFD) supports the cost of hiring research experts, survey costs of experts and costs related to organizing consultation meetings/workshops according to the time frame of the consulting group's task implementation.

Hai Yen