Guidelines for paying for emission reductions to citizens

"Turning forest wealth into capital"

From the crystal clear streams in the upper reaches of A Luoi and Nam Dong (old) to the protective forests along Truong Son, DVMTR is transforming into a real resource for Hue day by day. Not only stopping at supporting the cost of patrolling and protecting forests, DVMTR and ERPA are opening a new direction: Turning the ecological value of forests into a sustainable cash flow, nurturing livelihoods and contributing to combating climate change.

In 2023, the Forest Protection and Development Fund of Thua Thien Hue province (now Hue city) collected more than 77.8 billion VND in forest environmental services, exceeding the set plan. In 2024, in addition to forest environmental services, revenue from the ERPA program - payment for greenhouse gas emission reduction in the North Central region also brought more than 135 billion VND to Hue city in the period 2023 - 2025.

The most important thing is the disbursement efficiency. In 2023, nearly 100% of the money reached forest owners. Notably, 70% of the beneficiaries are ethnic minorities in remote areas, people directly connected to the forest. While in the past, many households near the forest had to struggle to make a living, now the forest environmental service policy has become a support. Nearly 6,000 households participate in forest protection, of which 68% are ethnic minorities. On average, each household receives more than 2 million VND in forest environmental service money, not to mention support from ERPA.

Notably, many communities have cleverly turned this source of money to develop their livelihoods. Household groups have agreed to use a portion of the DVMTR money to lend money to buy seeds, animals, and renovate mixed gardens. The loan amount is from 3 to 5 million VND/household, with no interest or low interest. This is a way to "turn forest wealth into capital", helping communities to both protect the forest and escape poverty.

Forest owners also make good use of resources. In 2024 alone, more than 14.5 billion VND was invested in silvicultural measures such as zoning to promote regeneration and forest enrichment. At the same time, community works, from toilets, solar power, to protective fences, were also invested with livelihood support capital from ERPA, contributing to improving the quality of life of villagers.

Sustainable revenue growth

Although revenue from DVMTR and ERPA has been increasing continuously, there are still many challenges. Some units are late in paying DVMTR, typically in the third quarter of 2024, there were 4 units late in paying more than 4 billion VND. Disbursement work is sometimes affected by changes in administrative boundaries.

On the other hand, some communities are still confused about recording and managing books, and are not proactive in using funds. This is a bottleneck that needs to be resolved, otherwise it will reduce transparency and trust in policies.

The good news is that the policy of paying for forest services is not just about “keeping forests for money”, but is gradually being integrated into the green economic development strategy. The ERPA pilot has demonstrated that forest carbon can become an internationally traded commodity, creating resources for development.

From this source of payment, many forest management boards have built specialized forest protection forces, attracting local workers, especially ethnic minorities. Hundreds of new jobs have been created, contributing to reducing migration pressure, keeping people in the forest.

In addition, communication and training work is also focused on bringing policies closer to the people. This is an important step to create social consensus, because forests are only sustainable with the cooperation of the whole community.

According to the Hue City Forest Protection and Development Fund, to “increase revenue from forests” more sustainably, strong steps are needed. Expanding the scope of payment does not stop at the hydropower and clean water sectors, but research is needed so that indirect benefiting sectors such as tourism and industrial production have appropriate contribution mechanisms. In applying digital technology, it is necessary to combine blockchain or open data platforms to make cash flow transparent, while attracting international organizations to participate in carbon trading. In addition, it is necessary to improve community capacity and integrate with rural development programs.

Article and photos: Le Tho

Source: https://huengaynay.vn/kinh-te/nguon-luc-xanh-157857.html