Quickly verify information reflecting the appearance of many new illegal wood chip factories
The Association of Wood and Non-Timber Forest Products Processing of Nghe An province has once again sent a document requesting the Provincial People's Committee to consider handling illegal wood chip processing facilities. It is worth noting that this petition also reflected that after the interdisciplinary team finished their inspection, many more illegal wood chip factories appeared!
Nhat Lan • July 18, 2024
The Association of Wood and Non-Timber Forest Products Processing of Nghe An province has once again sent a document requesting the Provincial People's Committee to consider handling illegal wood chip processing facilities. It is worth noting that this petition also reflected that after the interdisciplinary team finished their inspection, many more illegal wood chip factories appeared!
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REFLECTION FROM THE WOOD PROCESSING ASSOCIATION
As reported in the series of articles "Behind the illegal wood chip factories" (Nghe An Newspaper, July 2-5, 2024), in August 2023, the Nghe An Province Wood and Non-Timber Forest Products Processing Association sent Document No. 07/HHCBG&LS to the Provincial People's Committee requesting control of the situation of illegal wood chip factories. Starting from here, on December 1, 2023, the Provincial People's Committee issued Decision No. 3967/QD-UBND to establish an interdisciplinary team to inspect wood chip processing and chopping activities in the whole province.
In early June this year (2024), based on the inspection results of the Interdisciplinary Delegation, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development reported to the Provincial People's Committee, proposing a set of solutions to strengthen the management of wood chip processing activities in the province.
However, recently, on July 4, 2024, the Nghe An Province Association of Wood and Non-Timber Forest Products Processing continued to issue a document requesting the Provincial People's Committee to consider handling illegal wood chip processing facilities. This document listed in detail the wood chip processing facilities that had violated the regulations and were clarified by the Interdisciplinary Inspection Team; at the same time, it reflected that after the Interdisciplinary Team finished the inspection, many new illegal wood chip processing facilities appeared in some localities.
The original text of this document stated: “The interdisciplinary inspection team pointed out violations of wood chip processing facilities that did not comply with the law, especially facilities that had not been approved by competent authorities for investment policy; the investment policy decision stipulated that wood chip chopping was not allowed but a wood chip production line was installed for operation; production and business activities were not in accordance with the land use purpose; but some facilities that did not comply with the law on investment and did not comply with the land use purpose were not suspended. After the inspection team finished the inspection period; in some localities, many new wood chip processing facilities were established without being approved by competent authorities for investment policy...”.
The Nghe An Province Wood and Non-Timber Forest Products Processing Association explains the cause of this situation as follows: “According to information from association members, there are currently a number of enterprises in Hanoi and the northern provinces that have invested funds in a number of enterprises and individuals who have opened illegal wood chip processing facilities in Nghe An province. These enterprises have wood chip processing factories in Thanh Hoa. Around 2020-2022, these enterprises invested in individuals who opened illegal wood chip processing facilities in Thanh Hoa province to buy back wood chips sold by these facilities. However, due to the direction of the Provincial Party Committee and the People's Committee of Thanh Hoa province to resolutely handle, suspend, and dismantle illegal wood chip processing facilities; assign the Provincial Electricity to stop supplying electricity due to illegal operations; require the leaders of the People's Committees of districts and towns to take responsibility if illegal wood chip processing occurs in the area; many officials have been disciplined for allowing the situation of wood chip processing to occur. Therefore, these enterprises have now moved locations, invested in businesses and individuals to open illegal chip-chopping facilities in Nghe An, and even built factories on agricultural land and forestry land...”.
According to the Association of Wood and Non-Timber Forest Products Processing, the investment for each unlicensed wood chip factory is only about 3-5 billion VND. Meanwhile, a modern, specialized wood processing factory requires an investment of thousands of billions of VND. Therefore, with this situation, it is very difficult for the province to attract large investors to invest in deep wood processing projects. From here, the association proposes to the Provincial People's Committee: "Consider and direct departments, branches, and People's Committees of districts and towns to suspend the operations of wood chip production facilities that have not been approved by competent authorities for investment policies or are not in accordance with the content of the investment policy decision; production and business activities are not in accordance with the land use purpose; request the Electricity Authority to stop supplying electricity to these facilities; strengthen inspection and handling of cases of illegal wood chip production and processing in the province, put wood processing activities in the area into stable and legal operation, contributing to strengthening land management, environment, fire prevention and fighting, increasing State budget revenue, creating a favorable investment environment to attract businesses to invest in large-scale, in-depth projects; contributing to the construction and socio-economic development of the province".
VERIFY SOON AND REPORT TO THE PROVINCIAL PEOPLE'S COMMITTEE
Receiving the proposal of the Association of Wood Processing and Non-Timber Forest Products of Nghe An province, on July 8, 2024, the Provincial People's Committee issued Official Dispatch No. 5703/UBND-NN notifying the direction of Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Van De with the content: "Assign the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to preside over and coordinate with the Department of Industry and Trade and the People's Committees of districts, cities and towns to review the information and proposals of the Association of Wood Processing and Non-Timber Forest Products of Nghe An province in the above Document, advise the Provincial People's Committee to direct the implementation in accordance with regulations".
We (PV) contacted some district-level People's Committees such as Thanh Chuong, Tan Ky, Con Cuong, Quy Hop... to ask whether or not illegal wood chip factories continue to spring up. Upon receiving the information, the district People's Committees received Official Dispatch No. 5703/UBND-NN dated July 8, 2024 of the Provincial People's Committee, attached with Document No. 07/HHCBG&LS of the Association of Wood Processing and Non-Timber Forest Products, but there is no such situation!
Regarding Thanh Chuong district, Chairman of the district People's Committee Trinh Van Nha discussed that, in the area, there is only one illegal wood chip factory located in Thanh Thuy border commune, within the land area managed by the Youth Volunteer Team No. 5. Recently, the district has directed Thanh Thuy commune and functional units to strengthen supervision, not to let illegal wood chip activities recur.
Thanh Chuong area has no new illegal wood chip factories, I confirm this...”.
Mr. Trinh Van Nha - Chairman of Thanh Chuong District People's Committee
In Quy Hop district, Vice Chairman of the District People's Committee Quan Vi Giang said that recently, at the request of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the district has participated in giving comments on the Draft Document of the Provincial People's Committee on the management of wood chip processing activities in the province; the content of the Draft requires the district level to strictly manage and prevent illegal wood chip processing factories from operating.
Quy Hop district highly agrees with the draft content, however, it has proposed that the Provincial People's Committee and provincial departments and branches consider allowing local businesses to be approved to add chopped wood products, chips... in the investment approval decision, in order to fully collect branches and tops of raw acacia trees, avoid waste, and increase income for people and businesses.
While waiting for the official document from the Provincial People's Committee, Quy Hop district has tightened management to prevent the establishment of new illegal wood chip factories. This happens in other localities but not in Quy Hop district...”.
Mr. Quan Vi Giang - Vice Chairman of Quy Hop District People's Committee
The representative of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development said that up to now, the department has completed the Draft document on the management of wood chip processing activities and submitted it to the Provincial People's Committee. Regarding the reflection "After the inspection team finished the inspection period; in some localities, many new wood chip processing facilities were established without the competent authorities approving the investment policy..." of the Nghe An Province Wood and Non-Timber Forest Products Processing Association, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development assigned the Forest Protection Department to organize the verification. "This content will be verified and clarified by the Forest Protection Department. After that, the department will report to the Provincial People's Committee and respond to the Nghe An Province Wood and Non-Timber Forest Products Processing Association..." - the representative of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development affirmed.
