Hanoi (VNA) – The number forestry law violations inthe first four months of 2018 declined by 31 percent from last year to 4,226,reported the Vietnam Administration of Forestry.
These violations damaged 252 hectares of forest areas, down47 percent year on year.
In April alone, 1,140 violations were reported, down 41 percent on year. Twohundred cases of deforestation took place during the month, mostly in the northernmountainous province of Dien Bien’s Muong Nhe district and the CentralHighlands province of Dak Nong. The figure represented a decrease of 42 percentfrom last year.
The country also recorded 14 forest fires in April,destroying 23 hectares of forests. Most of the fires were spotted in northernprovinces, including Quang Ninh, Lai Chau and Bac Giang, due to the local widespreaddry condition and slash-and-burn farming practice.
The outcomes were attributed to local drastic implementationof forest protection measures.
The Vietnam Administration of Forestry urged localities tocontinue their efforts to reduce the 2018 number of violations and damagedforest areas by 20 percent compared to 2017.-VNA