PES study tour in Lam Dong

Poster on PES at Lam Dong Forest Protection and Development Fund office

From 8th to 10th December 2011, I was joining the Soc Trang delegation in a study tour to Lam Dong province to learn about Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) as Lam Dong is one of the first two provinces (the other is Son La) chosen and successful with pilot model for PES policy.

The policy on payment for forest ecosystem service was issued according to the governmental decrees No. 99/2010/NĐ-CP on 24.09.2010 in order to mobilize social resources, especially from organizations, individuals who get benefits from forest ecosystems services. The policy is aimed to ensure sustainable finance for forest protection and development, socializing forestry, increasing income and improving livelihoods for people who directly planting and protecting forests.

Deployment of PES   Firstly, Lam Dong province planed 4 projects of: - Surveying, categorizing and making statistics about ecosystem services providers and users (payers) as well as determining of ecosystem service values in Lam Dong province - Making forest land contracts - Building financial plan for PES in Lam Dong, determining of the co-efficient k for calculate PES - Surveying on forest resources, mapping and determining catchment areas to develop PES system Then, 2 working groups were established for PES disseminating and implementing

Services of forest ecosystems are:

- Protecting soil, reducing erosion and sedimentation

- Regulating and maintaining water resources

- Absorbing and storing carbon, reducing green house effect through sustainably forest development

- Protecting natural landscapes and biodiversity of forest ecosystems

- Providing spawning habitats, food, water resource for aquaculture

Payers in general are ecosystem service users such as:

- Hydropower plants

- Water supply plants

- Factories and industrial plants using water directly from the water resources

- Tourism business getting benefits from forest ecosystem services

- Subjects to pay for forest ecosystem services such as carbon absorption and storage; spawning habitats, food and water resource for aquaculture

Service providers should be paid through PES, they are:

- Owners of forests which provide ecosystem services

- Organizations, households, individuals, communities who have contracts on forest protection with government/stat-owned organizations.

Forms of payment: There are 2 forms of payment, directly and indirectly. Currently, Lam Dong province is applying the indirect payment, which means, the ecosystem service users have to pay for the service providers through the Forest Protection and Development Fund of Lam Dong province.The Fund was established in February 2009 as a state-owned financial organization belongs to DARD Lam Dong. The director board of this Fund involves representatives from DARD, DONRE and DPI (multi-disciplinary).

Payment regulation: 

- For hydropower plants: 20 VND/kWh

- For water supply plants: 40 VND/cubic meter of water

- For tourism business getting benefits from forest ecosystem services: 1% of revenue from tourist services.

Use of PES in Lam Dong province: The money collected from PES is distributed as following

- 10% is used for management activities of the provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund

- 5% is reserved in case of natural disasters, droughts…

- The rest is used for protecting forests. Differences between Lam Dong and Soc Trang:  It should be noted that the situation of Lam Dong is quite different to Soc Trang and that implies also different approach should be taken into account. -    Lam Dong has about 60% of land covered by forest (600,000 ha) while Soc Trang has mostly farm land (nearly 83%), only around 3.5% of land covered by forest, in which the mangrove protective forest in coastal area is just around 6,000 ha. -   There is no hydropower plants and no tourist companies (payers for PES) in Soc Trang like in the case of Lam Dong. Instead, Soc Trang has the mangroves which can provide spawning habitats, food and water resource for aquaculture, the ecosystem services that are not available in Lam Dong province. Lessons learned from Lam Dong province: -    Carbon absorption service is available wherever there is forest (Lam Ha and Di Linh are two pilot sites for this service payment in Lam Dong province). -   We should be active as MARD only giving general instructions. We need to make our own decision for our province base on specific local conditions. -    It is crucial to identify clearly payers for sustainability of the Fund. We need to survey and monitor these carefully. Monitoring and evaluation at district and commune levels can be done through People's Committee and sub-department of Forest Protection. -    Education and public awareness raising on PES is essential.

08.12.2011

Working with DARD the Forest Protection and Development Fund of Lam Dong Province

Mr. Xe handover a sourvenir from Soc Trang delegation to the Deputy Director of DARD Lam Dong

Group photo at DARD Lam Dong

At the Lam Dong Forest Protection and Development Fund

More details on establishment process and financial plan were shown in this presentation below

Presentation on the establishment and operation of the Forest Protection and Development Fund

09.12.2011

Field trip to one PES payer - Đơn Dương dam (reservoir for Đa Nhim hydropower plant)

Working with the sub-department of forest protection in D'ran town, Đơn Dương, Lâm Đồng

Group photo at Đơn Dương dam

Đơn Dương dam

Đơn Dương dam

10.12.2011

Field trip to the Lake of Sigh, a tourist place managed by Thùy Dương company, another PES payer

The director of Thuy Duong company shared their experience in payment for ecosystem service as a payer.

Tuyen Lam lake

Forest around Tuyen Lam lake