11 pieces of acacia wood that did not match the tree root were cut down.
On September 14, the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Gia Lai province said that it had verified and handled the content reported by the press about the tree felling at the headquarters of Ia Hru Commune People's Committee.
Through inspection, all the felled trees are located in the yard and campus of the old H'bông Commune People's Committee headquarters, now Ia Hrú commune.
Functional agencies determined that there were 15 felled trees, including 10 acacia trees, 3 phoenix trees and 2 cypress trees.
At the time of inspection, the amount of wood and firewood remaining at the commune People's Committee headquarters included 3.270m3 of acacia wood, 2 ster of acacia wood and 0.5 ster of phoenix wood. 2 cypress trees with no wood or firewood left at the scene.
Notably, out of 14 acacia logs, only 3 logs have a diameter suitable for the chopped tree stump; the remaining 11 logs have an inappropriate diameter.
The person directly involved in cutting down 10 acacia trees is Mr. Nguyen Nhu Vuong, a member of the Kte village grassroots security team. The felling was carried out on June 21.
According to the Department of Agriculture and Environment, through working, the Commune People's Committee and Ia Hru Commune Police said that the fact that some green trees do not match the diameter of the root is due to lack of technique when cutting down, such as opening the vein too large. Some 2-stem trees have been pruned in previous years or cut down during the tree felling process to facilitate collection.
The reason for the felling of 10 acacia trees is due to complicated weather diễn biến, strong winds breaking and collapsing branches of acacia trees, collapsing 2 iron frames of the commune headquarters fence adjacent to National Highway 25.
Faced with a situation considered to be a direct threat to people's lives, traffic safety and concerns that trees would continue to be uprooted, the forces cut down trees to quickly clear the scene.
In addition, due to insufficient legal awareness, grassroots forces have misunderstood and mechanically applied regulations allowing the felling of broken and fallen trees that threaten life without a permit.
However, the felling of green trees is not for the purpose of timber trading or personal gain. The entire remaining timber is collected and preserved at the headquarters.
Request to clarify responsibilities
From the inspection results, the Department of Agriculture and Environment determined that in the yard and campus of the commune People's Committee headquarters, there were 15 felled trees, including 10 acacia trees, 3 phoenix trees and 2 cypress trees.
Through comparing the number and size of tree stumps with the amount of wood and firewood remaining in the yard of the commune headquarters, the Department determined that in 14 acacia logs, 3 logs had a diameter suitable for the cut tree stump; the remaining 11 logs had a cross-section diameter that was not suitable for the stump.
The Department of Agriculture and Environment of the province said that the above green trees are directly managed by Ia Hru Commune People's Committee. The felling of these trees is not an administrative violation in the field of forestry. The Department and the Sub-Department of Forest Protection are not competent agencies to manage and advise state management of green trees.
The Department of Agriculture and Environment requested the Provincial People's Committee to direct the Ia Hru Commune People's Committee to coordinate with functional agencies to continue to verify the entire process of managing, cutting down, collecting and using the number of green trees at the headquarters.
In which, it is necessary to clarify the time, cause, directing person, and person directly implementing the 15 trees that were cut down; determine the responsibilities of relevant organizations and individuals.
Based on the proposal of the Department, the Chairman of Gia Lai Provincial People's Committee requested Ia Hru Commune People's Committee to review and fully implement the proposed contents; clearly define the responsibilities of relevant organizations and individuals and handle violations in accordance with legal regulations, and report the results to the Provincial People's Committee before September 16.
