The total area of special-use forests will be increased from current 2.2 million hectares to 2.4 million by 2020, in line with the strategy for management of special-use forests and sea and inland water reserves promulgated together with Prime Minister Decision No. 218/QD-TTg of February 7, 2014.
Under Prime Minister Decision No. 1976/QD-TTg of October 30, issuing the master plan to develop the national special-use forest system through 2020, with a vision toward 2030, the special-use forest area of 2.4 million hectares will include 34 national parks, 58 nature reserves, 14 species/habitat reserves, 61 landscape protection zones and scientific research forests.
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| Trang An wetland reserve with special-use forests in Ninh Binh province__Photo: Minh Duc/VNA |
The northwestern region will have 222,000 hectares of special-use forests, including a new 17,000-hectare nature reserve in Muong La (for protection of the forest ecosystem and biodiversity as well as the river basin for Son La hydropower plant).
In the northeastern region, some 400,000 hectares will be zoned off, covering well-known landscapes such as Ha Long Bay, Tam Dao mountains, Ba Be lake and Hoang Lien Son mountain range.
The Read River delta will have 65,000 hectares of protected special-use forests in limestone mountain and wetland areas. Existing forests in Hanoi and Ninh Binh, Hai Duong and Nam Dinh provinces will also be conserved.-
