E2871 v2
GOVERNMENT OF VIETNAM
FOREST SECTOR DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT
AND
UPDATED ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
AND MONITORING PLAN
FOR ADDITIONAL FINANCING AND EXTENSION
October 10, 2011
Table of Contents
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1Brief Project Description
1.2 Project Executing and Implementing Agencies
1.3 Investment Capital and Funding Sources
1.4 Additional Financing and Extension
1.5 Procedure in EIA Preparation
1.5.1 Site feasibility study in 2 new provinces
1.5.2 Assessment of proposed new districts of Binh Dinh and Quang Ngai.
1.5.3 Review of important project documents
2. REVIEW OF LEGAL POLICY FRAMEWORK AND IMPLEMENTATION OF FSDP ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION GUIDELINES
2.1Pertinent Policies of the Government of Vietnam
2.2 Relevant Policies of the World Bank
3. FSDP ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
3.1 FSDP Environmental Protection Guidelines
3.2Compliance to FSDP Environmental Protection Guidelines
3.3Internal Assessment of FSDP Plantations Performance
3.4 Actions Taken to Improve Plantation Performance.
3.5Use of pesticides by Farmers
3.6Cumulative Impacts
4.0ENVIRONMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS OF SELECTED PROJECT SITES UNDER ADDITIONAL FINANCING
4.1 Selected Areas
4.2Nghe An Province
4.2.1Geographical location and administrative divisions
4.2.2Topography
4.2.3Soil
4.2.4Rivers and streams
4.2.5 Climate
4.2.6 Existing flora and fauna
4.2.7 Forestland classification
4.2.8 Potential areas for plantation management in Nghe An
4.3Thanh Hoa Province
4.3.1 General Information
4.3.2 Soil
4.3.3 Water resources
4.3.4 Climate
4.3.5 Fauna
4.3.6 Forest land classification
4.3.7 Potential areas for smallholder forest plantation management in Thanh Hoa
4.4 Quang Ngai Province
4.4.1 Proposed new districts and communes
4.4.2 Minh Long District
4.4.3 Binh Son district
4.4.4 Ba To and Tra Bong districts
4.5 Proposed new project sites in Binh Dinh Province
4.5.1 Proposed communes and socio-economic characteristics
4.5.2 Hoai An
4.5.3 Binh Thanh commune, Tay Son District
5.0SUMMARY OF EXISTING PLANTATION MANAGEMENT PRACTICES IN PROPOSED NEW PROJECT SITES
5.1Plantation Objectives
5.2 Planted species
5.3Site Preparation
5.4 Planting
5.5 Tending
5.6 Intercropping
5.7 Pests and Diseases Control
5.8 Fire Prevention and Control
5.9 Harvesting
6.POTENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF SMALLHOLDER PLANTATION FORESTS IN EXPANSION AREAS AND MITIGATION MEASURES
6.1 Potential Environmental Impacts
6.1.1 Soil erosion
6.1.2 Loss of Soil Fertility
6.1.3 Risk of Pest and Disease Infestation
6.1.4 Loss of Biodiversity
6.1.5 Fire Risk
6.1.6 Carbon Sequestration
6.2 Environmental Management Measures
7.0UPDATED ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION GUIDELINES
7.1 Site Selection
7.2 Plantation Planning
7.2.1 Landscape Plantation Planning
7.2.2 Plantation Plot Design
7.3 Species Selection
7.4 Site Preparation
7.4.1 Vegetation clearance
7.4.2 Digging of planting holes
7.4.3 Basal fertilization
7.5 Intercropping
7.6 Tending
7.7 Integrated Pest Management
7.8 Fire Prevention and Control
7.9 Access Tracks
7.10 Plantation Harvesting
8. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING PLAN
8.1Implementation Monitoring
8.2 Compliance Monitoring
8.3Condition Monitoring
ANNEX 1. ACTION PLAN TO IMPROVE PLANTATION PERFORMANCE
ANNEX 2. FSC PRINCIPLES AND CRITERIA FOR STEWARDSHIP
ANNEX 3. TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION ON FORMULATION OF PLANTATION DESIGN INTRODUCTION
General approach to the Works
Professional Standards and Quality Assurance
Site characterization.
Definition of plantation owner objectives and management options
Description of technical specifications
Conforming to Environmental Protection Guidelines
Schedule of activities
Review and revision of plan
Site development plan
Interpretation
Contractor and Equipment Qualification
Feature Interpretation and Mapping
Deliverables and Data Management
Quality Assurance and Audit
Technological/Personnel Change
ANNEX 4. LIST OF PESTICIDES BANNED FOR USED IN VIETNAM
ANNEX 5.UPDATED ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION GUIDELINES AND MONITORING PLAN FOR FOREST PLANTATION MANAGEMENT
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION GUIDELINES (EPGs)FOR PLANTATION MANAGEMENT
1. Site Selection
2. Plantation Planning
3. Plantation Plot Design
4. Species Selection
5. Site Preparation
6. Intercropping
7. Tending
8. Integrated Pest Control
9. Fire Prevention and Control
10. Access Tracks
11. Plantation Harvesting
8. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING PLAN
1Implementation Monitoring
2 Compliance Monitoring
3Condition Monitoring
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1. Key features of revised smallholder forest plantation model / 13Table 2. Area of forest plantations established from 2005-2010 under FSDP / 14
Table 3. Estimated forest plantations established in 4 provinces by end of 2011 / 15
Table 4. Forest plantation targets proposed for additional financing / 18
Table 5. Criteria for the assessment of proposed additional project sites in Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh Provinces. / 20
Table 6. Summary of Environmental Protection Guidelines 2003, FSDP / 29
Table 7. Summary of selected plantation areas in 6 provinces to be included under the additional financing and extension operation. / 41
Table 8. Soil characteristics of potential plantation areas in Nghe An province / 44
Table 9. Reservoirs in six districts of Nghe An Province proposed to join FSDP / 44
Table 10. Climatic characteristics of Nghe An Province, average of last 10 years, Do Luong Weather Station / 46
Table 11. Forestland classification of Nghe An Province / 48
Table 12. Potential areas for smallholder plantation management in Nghe An based on assessment by FIPI / 50
Table 13. Soil characteristics of potential project areas in Thanh Hoa province / 53
Table 14. Water reservoirs in Thanh Hoa districts proposed for FSDP participation. / 54
Table 15. Climatic data of Thanh Hoa, average of 2 years (2008 – 2009) / 55
Table 16. Forest land classification of Thanh Hoa Province according to master plan 2005 - 2015 / 57
Table 17. Potential areas for smallholder forest plantation management in Thanh Hoa based on assessment by FIPI / 59
Table 18. Additional sites proposed in Quang Ngai Province / 60
Table 19. Ethnic population of Minh Long District, 2010 / 61
Table 20. Additional sites proposed in Binh Dinh Province / 66
Table 11. Area (ha) of forest destroyed by fire / 74
Table 22. Criteria for site selection under FSDP / 82
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1. Project poster prepared by Binh Phuoc commune, Binh Son district, Quang Ngai / 37Figure 2. Barren land in Thanh Hoa province. / 38
Figure 3. Unproductive cashew plantation proposed to be replaced with forest plantations of Acacia, Tay Son district, Binh Dinh / 39
Figure 4 Coppice plantations of Eucalyptus excerta, left (Nghi Loc District, Thanh Hoa) and E. camaldulensis, right (Tinh Gia District, Nghe An). / 39
Figure 5 Harvestable Acacia plantations in Thanh Chuong District, Nghe An and in Binh Son, Quang Ngai / 40
Figure 6 Mixture of eucalyptus and acacia species (Ha Trung District, Thanh Hoa). / 69
Figure 7 Erythrophloeum fordii (Lim xanh) planted by households, along Ho Chi Minh trail, Tan Ky District established under Program 327 and/ or 661. / 70
Figure 8 Burning is a common site preparation practice in both provinces, even in sites just above reservoirs (right picture) as in Nhu Thanh District, Thanh Hoa / 71
Figure 9. Excavation of eucalyptus stumps in Nghe An province. / 72
Figure 10. A sound site preparation practice in Ha Trung District, Thanh Hoa Province. / 72
Figure 11. Newly planted acacia hybrid intercropped with cassava, Minh Long district, Quang Ngai province / 73
Figure 12 Deep gullies formed by soil erosion in plantations in Du Luong District (left) and in the boundaries between Dien Chau and Nghi Loc Districts (right). / 76
Figure 13 Badly eroded banks of drainage canals (Thin Gia District) and streams (Nghi Loc District). / 76
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
5MHRPFive Million Hectare Reforestation Program
CPCCommune People’s Committee
CPCUCentral Project Coordination Unit
CWGCommune Working Group
DARDDepartment of Agriculture and Rural Development
DLODepartment of Land Administration
DPCDistrict People’s Committee
DIUDistrict Implementation Unit
EAEnvironmental Assessment
EIAEnvironmental Impact Assessment
EUEuropean Union
FDDForest Development Department
FFGFarm Forestry Group
FPDForest Protection Department
FINNIDAFinnish International Development Agency
FIPIForest Inventory and Planning Institute
FPDForest Protection Department
FSDPForest Sector Development Project
FSIVForest Science Institute of Vietnam
FSSPForestry Sector Support Program
GDLOGeneral Department of Land Administration
GDPGross Domestic Product
GEFGlobal Environment Facility
GoVGovernment of Vietnam
GTZDeutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit
IDAInternational Development Assistance
IPMIntegrated Pest Management
HaHectare
LUCLand Use Right Certificate
M&EMonitoring and Evaluation
MARDMinistry of Agriculture and Rural Development
MDFMedium Density Fiberboard
MONREMinistry of Natural Resources and Environment
MOSTEMinistry of Science and Technology
NGONon-Governmental Organization
ODAOverseas Development Administration, UK
PIMProject Implementation Manual
PPCProvincial People’s Committee
PPMUProvincial Project Management Unit
SIASocial Impact Assessment
SFEState Forest Enterprise
SKMSinclaire Knights Merz
SUFSpecial Use Forest
TATechnical Assistance
TORTerms of Reference
VBSPVietnam Bank for Social Policies
VCFVietnam Conservation Fund
WBWorld Bank
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Smallholder Plantation Forest Component is one of 4 components of the Forest Sector Development Project which aims to develop sustainable, productive and profitable plantation forests and help eradicate poverty in the rural areas. It has been implemented since 2005 in 4 provinces, namely Thua Thien Hue, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh. Recently, the Government of Vietnam requested the World Bank for an Additional Financing Operation and the extension of the FSDP.
This supplemental Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)was prepared in accordance with relevant laws of Vietnam and the operational policies of the World Bank . It covers the proposed FSDP Additional Financing operation in six provinces: Binh Dinh, Quang Ngai, Quang Nam, Thua Thien Hue, Nghe An and Thanh Hoa. It supplements the original EIA done in 2003 and integrates the findings of the environmental impact assessment in the two new provinces Nghe An and Thanh Hoa and the environmental screening done in the proposed new districts in Binh Dinh and Quang Ngai provinces. The Project’s Environmental Protection Guidelines were updated taking into consideration the observations made in the Internal Assessment of plantations of 2010 and the actions taken to comply with Environmental Protection Guidelines and efforts to achieve sustainable forest plantation management.
The potential additional project sites in the six provinces totals 56,277 ha, itemized as follows:
Thanh Hoa -9,213 ha
Nghe An-11,035 ha
Thua Thien Hue-7,148 ha
Quang Nam-10,997 ha
Quang Ngai-10,324 ha
Binh Dinh-7,510 ha
About 15,600 ha of these sites are barren lands (1a and 1b) and low quality plantations, while the rest are unproductive or underproductive plantations, which are harvestable in 2012-2013 and require replacement for improved management. Almost half of the proposed project areas have already been covered by Land Use Rights Certificates(Red Book) while the other half have been allocated to individual households but have yet to be issued Red Books.
The potential environmental impacts of smallholder plantation development in the additional project areas include:
Soil erosion
The most important potential adverse impacts of smallholder plantation project in the two provinces is excessive soil erosion triggered by poor management practices such as:
1)comprehensive vegetation clearance followed by burning during site preparation;
2)excavation of tree stumps/roots using machines in sloping areas;
3)cultivation, planting and harvesting of agricultural crops on sloping areas;
4)improper construction and poor maintenance of access tracks;
5)soil disturbances during harvesting operations and yarding of logs;
6)cutting/ removal of native vegetation along drainage canals and stream banks.
The problem of soil erosion will be aggravated by steep slopes, and heavy rainfall such as that occurring in the provinces in September to October. On site, soil erosion leads to loss of top soil and soil fertility, reducing productive capacity of site in the following rotations. Off site, eroded soil results in siltation and sedimentation of reservoirs, rivers and streams which would trigger a series of adverse consequences such as reduce water quality, lower water holding capacity, and impacts on aquatic life. This is a serious concern because some of the proposed plantation sites are situated above the reservoirs which are supplying irrigation water for rice paddy production.
Loss of soil fertility
Loss of soil fertility as a consequence of soil erosion as described above, and by the burning of vegetation in site preparation, and removal of biomass in harvesting.
Pest and disease infestation
Risk of pest and disease infestationincreases with increasing area of monoculture plantations especially exotic species.
The use of pesticides to control important pests and diseases could have several potentially adverse environmental impacts, including on the health of the workers applying them.
Loss of biodiversity
Impact of smallholder plantation forests on biodiversity will be minimal because little biodiversity remain in proposed areas. However, the Project would have positive impact on biodiversity, if the native species will be planted along with the fast growing species, or if 3 or more clones of acacias (hybrid) will be per planted in each plantation area.
Fire risk
Risk to plantation damage cause by fire is expected to be minimal, if plantation species would be limited to Acacia and eucalyptus species, which are less susceptible to fire than Pinus merkusii, and the authorities and local communities will continue to implement their present fire prevention and control program.
Carbon sequestration
The plantation forests could sequester up to 77 tons per ha of carbon in 6 – 7 years, some of which will remain sequestered if the wood will be used for building construction, for furniture or MDF. The plantations would then have positive contribution in reducing the impact of climate change.
Mitigation measures
Management measures to mitigate the potential adverse environmental impacts are the following:
Proper selection of sites to ensure high productivity and profitability of plantations with minimal impacts on the environment and the local communities.
Implementation of landscape level planning in each participating village and the revised plantation design contract. Compliance to the landscape plantation plan and design must be strictly monitored.
Proper selection of species that matches the site and management objectives. Planting of native species in mixture with exotic, fast growing species should be encouraged.
Adoption of good silvicultural practices in plantation management. In these regard, extension and training should be strengthened, making full use of manuals on plantation establishment and management prepared by the project.
Development and adoption of environment-friendly, non-chemical methods of pest management, with primary reliance on prevention and biological and silvicultural control rather than on the use of pesticides.
Forest fire prevention and control must be an integral part of the management plan for the plantations.
Access tracks must be designed, constructed and maintained with the least impact on soil erosion and the environment in general.
Harvesting of wood and other forest plantation products must be done in a manner to minimize soil disturbance.
The updated Environmental Protection Guidelines were prepared to integrate lessons learned in project implementation over the past five years and the findings of this supplemental EIA (see Annex 5).
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1Brief Project Description
The 5Million Hectare Reforestation Program (5MHRP) was launched in 1998 to increase forest cover to 14.3 million ha or 43 % of the total land area of the country and increase the supply of wood for industrial and domestic purposes. The 12-year reforestation program was also intended to significantly contribute to the eradication of poverty in the rural areas and to improve environmental conditions. It is in this context that the Forest Sector Development Project (FSDP) was formulated.The Pre-Feasibility Study of FSDP was approved by the Prime Minister on 6 April 2004 under Decision No. 332/QD-TTg, while the Project Feasibility Study was approved by Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) through Decision No. 1067 QD/BNN-LN dated 27 April 2004. The Project Agreements were signed on 4 April 2005. FSDP implementation started in March 2005 and, as currently planned (without the Additional Financing and Extension), would end in March 2011
The development objective of FSDP is to achieve sustainable management of forest plantations and the conservation of biodiversity in special use forests and enhance the contribution of natural forests and forest plantations to rural poverty reduction and global environmental protection. It has four components, namely:
Institutional Development to improve policy and regulatory environment for sustainable forestry management and biodiversity conservation;
Smallholder Plantation Forestry to provide credit and technical assistance to local households in developing productive, sustainable and profitable forest plantations;
Special Use Forests to provide competitive grants and technical assistance in managing at least 50 special use forests of international importance, and
Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation to enhance the capacity in regional, provincial, district and commune levels in providing needed support services and in monitoring and evaluating project impacts and outcomes.
The Smallholder Plantations Component originally aimed at establishing 66,000 ha of productive and profitable commercial forest plantationsfor smallholders in four provinces, namely Thua Thien Hue, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh .These plantations are expected toproduceabout 3.3 million m3 of pulpwood, 300,000 m3 of saw logs and 400,000 m3 of fuel woodby the end of the first harvest in 2016. The plantations are expected to provide additional sources of income, generate employment and thus help reduce poverty in the rural areas.
The Project provides smallholders/farmers with low-interest financing through Vietnam Bank for Social Policies (VBSP), and supports land allocation to households as incentive for long term investments. To improve the economic viability and sustainability of plantations, farmers are given technical assistance in land use planning, plantation design, access to high quality planting materials, capacity building and extension services on important aspects of plantation establishment, tending and management. The Project promotes sustainable forest plantation management to qualify plantations as certifiable under international forest certification standards. Towards this end, the project encourages farmers to organize themselves into Farm Forestry Groups (FFG) as strategy to obtain group forest certification and to sustain project initiatives long after its completion.
The overall guidance for the project is described in the Project Implementation Manual (PIM), agreed upon by donors, World Bank, and the Government of Vietnam.
Project participants can choose from 8 plantation models, as follows:
- Models 1 and 2 involve fast-growing, exotic species (Acacia, Eucalyptus) aimed at maximizing wood production. Both are short-term models (6-8 years) for production of pulpwood. Model 1 is based on a medium quality site and model 2 is based on a good site.
- Model 3 involves a longer plantation cycle (12-15 years) for production of both pulpwood (68 years) and higher value saw-logs (12-15 years).
- Model 4 involves planting fast-growing tree species (such as Acacia) as a nurse crop, with native hardwoods (Hopea, Dipterocarpus, Erythrophleum, Castanopsis) inter-planted after 2-3 years. The fast-growing trees are harvested for chip-wood at 6-8 years. The native hardwoods are harvested for saw-logs at 25 to 35 years.
- Model 5 is a short-term model providing income from chip-wood, harvested at 7-8 years, with intercropping of annual agricultural crops.
- Model 6, is a mixed-farming system, appropriate for allocated land plots with hill slopes and lowland, alluvial soils. Fast growing trees (Acacia, Melia, Eucalyptus) are grown on one portion of the allocated land plot for wood production, and nut or fruit trees (e.g. Cashew, etc.) on another portion of the plot.
- Model 7 is a longer-term model producing chip-wood at 7-8 years and saw-logs at 1015 years. Both models are applicable to a wide range of sites and project participants, including use in conjunction with swidden agriculture in ethnic minority areas.
- Model 8 is also an agroforestry based on planting fast-growing trees such as Acacia or Melia at about 1000 trees per ha and then interplanting with tree crops, such as improved genotypes of cinnamon, during the early years of the plantation, prior to cashew-nut production.
Experience in the past five years show that most farmers follow Model 1 and 2 (chip wood production) and Model 5 (incropping with cassava). Plantation models have been updated in 2009 and the key features of these models are described in Table 1.