New Community Awareness Activity in Tam Dao Targets Adult Residents
June 18th 2006, the ENV education team in Tam Dao National Park carried out its 10th Participatory Learning Appraisal (PLA) program in Tan Dan village of Son Duong District of Tuyen Quang province with participation from 40 local residents.
After brief introductory remarks by the village leader, eight working groups met to discuss various topics. The main focus issues were the resources of Tam Dao National Park, seasonal timing of resource collection in the forest, conflicts of interest, and community involvement in park protection.
Opinions differed on which activities were harmful to forests, but participants were united in the high value placed on the forest. The villagers identified resources such as water, timber, medicinal plants, wildlife, clean air and beautiful landscapes. A majority considered logging to have a major impact on park health, believing there to be a domino effect when cutting even one tree. However, one middle-age man disagreed. According to him, collecting medicinal plants, rattan and wood does have a negative impact on the park.
ENV’s Tam Dao program leader and park ranger, Dang Cong Thuc, advocated using the forest only for scientific research, mentioning the numerous medicines discovered in plants. He explained, “The forest is just like a machine. If you take any part away, it will not function properly. Anything we take out of the forest, including firewood, will have a negative impact on the park. Even if a tree dies, it still feeds other life with its nutrients.”
One working group unanimously concluded that illegal hunting and trade have decimated local wildlife populations. They said that the forest was full of life in the 1960s, when only a few families occupied the village and locals hunted to supplement their families’ diet. However, in recent years, different modern weapons have been brought into the village and hunting is done not only to feed families, but also to make money in the wildlife trade. Now wildlife has become scarce; monkeys and deer are some of the forest inhabitants that you almost never see. The villagers were asked whether they believed the wildlife population would return to levels seen in the past. They thought it almost impossible, given the current situation. Mr. Thuc noted that more than ten animal species no longer are found in the park.
The massive and rapid destruction of the old growth of the forest was also of concern to the discussion. Since 1990, the park has lost many of its large trees, and people remarked that even if the park were well protected, it would take decades of growth to replace them.
More importantly to the people in the area, the disappearance of trees has led to a dwindling of the local water supply. The villagers said that they hope the government will build dam to provide water for agriculture. Mr. Thuc commented, “Just on the issue of water supply, the profit from cutting trees can’t compare with the cost we will pay for a dam. It would further degrade the environment and construction will be very expensive as well.” It’s not just water for irrigation that is in short supply. People no longer dare to drink from streams in the forest because of severe pollution.
The participants did end with one shared conclusion; Forest protection is the key to preserving biodiversity and it is the communities of people that benefit. Strict regulations should be issued to prevent the situation from becoming worse. The people of Tan Dan village are aware that if the situation continues, they will be forced to move away. Ten species in the Tam Dao National Forest are already gone, but the impact of environmental refugees from a national park would be very visible.
