ĐIỆN BIÊN — So far this month, northern mountainous province authorities have detained 56 people allegedly involved in the destruction of 18.6ha of forest in total, Vietnam News Agency reports. These serial offences took place in Điện Biên Province’s Mường Nhé District, an area populated by ethnic minority groups and that is rife with deforestation activities, mostly of the slash-and-burn type. Điện Biên provincial People’s Committee has said that the deforestation is getting “more and more complicated”. Awareness raising campaigns are also given a boost to educate ethnic groups regarding State laws and regulations concerning forest protection. In addition, ethnic groups that have nomadic lifestyle will likely engage in slash-and-burn agriculture, which they might not even know is illegal.

Source: Viet Nam News March 22, 2017 11:37 UTC