Dien Bien: Strengthening forest fire prevention and control

To proactively protect forests from "fire", Dien Bien province has directed all levels and sectors to implement many fire prevention and fighting measures to minimize damage caused by forest fires.

Dien Bien province currently has 423,129.17 hectares of forest land, mainly natural forests; the province's forest cover rate by the end of 2023 will reach 44.01%. To protect the forest area from the risk of fire attacks during the dry season, Dien Bien province directs units and localities to strictly implement legal regulations related to the forestry sector. Accordingly, it is required that heads of relevant departments and branches, Chairmen of People's Committees of districts and cities proactively take measures to prevent and fight forest fires, minimizing damage caused by forest fires. Strengthen inspection and supervision of forest fire prevention and fighting, not being subjective, negligent, or losing vigilance; Direct forest rangers to arrange permanent forces at checkpoints and stations to strictly control people entering and leaving forest areas at high risk of fire; Direct the People's Committees of communes and forest owners to inspect, review, and adjust forest fire prevention and fighting plans to ensure they are consistent with the actual situation.

Every year, localities in the province organize forest fire prevention drills.

Mr. Ha Luong Hong, Head of the Dien Bien Provincial Forest Protection Department, said: Every year, the Forest Protection Force has coordinated with local authorities to guide and urge forest owners and local communities to develop and implement forest fire prevention and fighting plans (PCCCR). At the same time, consolidate and perfect the Forest Protection Teams (Teams) (PCCCR) at the grassroots level, assign tasks and responsibilities to each member to effectively carry out the tasks. Up to now, the province has established 1,231 PCCCR teams at the village and hamlet level with 12,794 members, ready to carry out fire fighting tasks in the area.

Forest rangers and members of the village forest protection team demarcate forest boundaries and production areas to come up with a plan to focus on protecting the forest from encroachment by people.

Regularly develop and organize forces to implement fire prevention and fighting plans in the province and continue to equip fire prevention and fighting tools in some districts and communes with high risk of forest fires to proactively fight forest fires when they occur.

Forest fire prevention must be carried out seriously, on duty 24/7 in high-risk areas. Prepare forces, means and equipment to prevent forest fires according to the 4-on-the-spot principle, including: "on-the-spot forces, on-the-spot command, on-the-spot means, on-the-spot logistics". When detecting a forest fire, the forest owner must promptly report to the local authorities to coordinate prevention, handling and minimizing forest damage.

People of Cha Nua commune, Nam Po district build forest patrol roads during the dry season.

According to Mr. Ha Luong Hong, in the province, people living in rural areas, the main occupation is agriculture, cultivation, production mainly in the form of slash-and-burn cultivation, little water in the fields, economic conditions are still difficult, profits from buying and selling forest products are high; the habit of building houses with wood, using firewood as fuel. Along with that, the weather has complicated developments, the El Nino phenomenon has prolonged drought, reduced rainfall (especially in March - April) coincides with the agricultural burning season of the people, leading to deforestation and forest fires. From there, it creates great pressure on forest management, protection, and fire prevention and control in the province.

During the peak of the dry season, Dien Bien province mobilized all forces to protect existing forest areas from the risk of fire encroachment.

In addition to prevention measures, propaganda to help people understand the meaning of forest fire prevention and control work is also focused on by all levels, sectors and localities. From the beginning of 2024 up to now, the forest rangers have coordinated with local authorities to organize 168 live propaganda sessions on forest fire prevention and control work and safe slash-and-burn measures for more than 9,300 people; organized more than 8,000 people to sign a commitment to protect forests, commit to burning slash-and-burn to prevent fires from spreading into the forest. At the same time, propaganda was organized on the loudspeaker system of communes, villages and hamlets, with 168 hours of broadcasting. In addition, the forest rangers organized 782 patrols with nearly 4,200 participants./.

Source: https://thoidai.com.vn/dien-bien-tang-cuong-cong-tac-phong-chong-chay-rung-206488.html