E1.1.1. Natural forest, ecosystems and biodiversity definitions and identification

Viet Nam's ecosystems can be divided into three main groups, typical of tropical ecology, including terrestrial ecosystems, wetland ecosystems (including inland wetlands and coastal wetlands), and marine ecosystems.[1] According to the Law on Biological Diversity (2018),[2] natural ecosystems are ecosystems formed and developed according to natural laws, still retaining their wild features, and new natural ecosystems are new ecosystems that form and develop on alluvial areas at coastal estuaries, alluvial areas and other lands.

Natural forests are defined and differentiated from plantations under the Law on Forestry (2017). Natural forests are forests existing in nature, reproduced naturally, or reproduced naturally with additional planting. Criteria for natural forests, including primary and secondary, are set out in Article 4 of Decree No. 156/2018/ND-CP guiding the Law on Forestry (2017).[3] In addition, both natural and planted forests in Viet Nam are classified according to their purpose or management category, including production forest, protection forests, and special use forests (SUFs).[4]

Viet Nam has regulations and programs for identification, mapping and inventory of forests and other ecosystems including:

• Circular No. 23/2023/TT-BNNPTNT regulating the measurement, reporting, and appraisal of greenhouse gas emission reduction results and greenhouse gas inventory in the forestry sector.
• Circular No. 27/2018/TT-BTNMT regulates statistics, land inventory and mapping of current land use status for national, regional, provincial, district and commune levels.
• The National Forest Inventory, Monitoring, and Assessment Program (NFIMAP) is implemented by the Forest Inventory and Planning Institute in 5-year cycles.
• The Annual Forest and Forestry Land Monitoring and Reporting Program (Program No. 32), conducted by the Forest Protection Department since 2001, following the Directive No. 32/2000/CT-BNN-KL dated March 27, 2000.
• Project on inventory, assessment, and monitoring of national forest resources for the period 2022-2025.[5]
• The National Biodiversity Strategy for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050[6] includes: the development of maps of the current status of coral reefs, seagrass beds and wetland areas nationwide; development of maps of current biodiversity status and current status of biodiversity conservation “planning objects” for each ecological region (e.g. corridors, reserves, important wetlands, etc); and maps identifying priority areas for biodiversity conservation in the planning period for each ecological region.
• MARD Circular No. 33/2018/TT-BNNPTNT classifies forests according to their origin, and sets out requirements related to mapping, including: distribution map of endangered, precious and rare forest plants; distribution map of endangered, precious and rare forest animals; map of forest inventory results and map of forest change results.

 

[1] The Viet Nam National Ecosystem Assessment (2022): https://files.ipbes.net/ipbes-web-prod-public-files/webform/impact_tracking_database/62262/Summary_For_Policy_Makers_National_Ecosystem_Assessment_Report_Of_Viet_Nam.pdf

[2] Law on Biodiversity (2018)

[3] Criteria for natural forest: (1) The canopy cover of woody plants, bamboo, and areca (hereinafter referred to as forest trees) which is the main component of natural forests is 0.1 or more; (2) Contiguous area of 0.3 ha or more; (3) The average height of forest trees which are the main components of natural forests is divided according to site conditions as follows: a) Natural forests on hills, mountains, and plains: the average height of forest trees is 5.0 m or more; b) Natural forests on freshwater wetlands: the average height of forest trees is 2.0 m or more; c) Natural forest on alkaline soil: the average height of forest trees is 1.5 m or more; d) Natural forests on rocky mountains, sandy soils, mangroves and other types of forests in other special ecological conditions: the average height of forest trees is 1.0 m or more.

[4] Announcement of the current land use status of the country until December 31, 2021 by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (2023) notes that forest land use classification has 3 types: (1) Production forest land (including natural production forest land and planted production forest land); (2) Protection forest land (including natural protection forest land and planted protection forest land); (3) Special use forest land (including natural special use forests land and planted special use forests land).

[5] Decision No 2327/QD-BNN-LN dated June 13, 2023 of MARD
[6] Decision No 1352/QQ-TTg dated November 8 2024 on approving Biodiversity Conservation Strategy for the period 2021 - 2030, with a vision to 2050