Potential risk of forest fires
According to statistics from Dak Lak Provincial People's Committee, the whole province currently has more than 743,000 hectares of forest land. Of which, about 530,000 hectares are natural forests and 212,000 hectares are planted forests, with a forest cover rate of 41.06%.
In the context of complex climate change and prolonged dry season, the risk of forest fires in Dak Lak province in 2026 is assessed at a high level.
Mr. Nguyen Quoc Hung - Deputy Director of Ea So Nature Reserve - said: "The unit currently manages and protects 26,800ha of forest, mostly natural forest, adjacent to 5 communes. Faced with climate change, the dry season of 2026 is forecast to have some unpredictable weather patterns, high risk of forest fires".
According to Mr. Hung, the unit has been and is deploying 1 mobile team and 9 forest protection checkpoints at the grassroots level. About 40 personnel regularly monitor the situation, ready to handle emergency situations.
In the past 3 years, although each dry season has been quite harsh, with prolonged heat, the forest area managed by the unit has only experienced very small fires, with almost insignificant damage.
Also according to Mr. Hung, the biggest difficulty is that the managed forest area is too large, while the protection force is thin, and must be distributed in many hot spot areas that are frequently at risk of forest destruction and illegal loggers operating. If large-scale forest fires occur, controlling the situation will be very difficult.
In the border area (belonging to the former Ea Sup district), the pressure of forest fire prevention and fighting on Dak Lak Food and Forestry Processing Co., Ltd. and Phuoc Hoa One Member Co., Ltd. is also very high, as these two units are managing tens of thousands of hectares of forest.
This is an area with a harsh climate, prolonged heat, and the risk of forest fires is always high, so functional agencies pay special attention every year.
According to the Dak Lak Provincial Forest Protection Department, there are two areas with high risk of forest fires with large areas in the area. In which, the western area is about 62,000ha, and the eastern area is nearly 34,000ha.
Establish mobile teams
Immediately after the 2026 Lunar New Year holiday, the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Dak Lak province established an inter-sectoral inspection team to inspect fire prevention and fighting in the dry season.
The inspection team includes police, military and forest rangers, conducting inspections of 11 areas with 38 locations at high risk of forest fires managed by forestry companies and People's Committees of communes and wards. This activity is implemented from mid-March to late April 2026.
The synchronous coordination of forces to ensure that forest fire inspection and prevention work is carried out comprehensively and objectively.
At the same time, monitor forest planting, management and protection activities of forest owners. Thereby, creating positive pressure for units to improve their responsibility and build more effective forest protection plans.
Mr. Nguyen Quoc Hung - Head of Dak Lak Provincial Forest Protection Department - said that forest fire prevention and fighting is not only the task of the forest protection force but also the common responsibility of the entire political system and the community.
Especially in remote and isolated areas, the coordination between functional agencies, forest owners and people plays an important role in protecting forest resources.
According to Mr. Hung, the new point in this work is that the forest protection sector has proactively developed a plan from the end of 2025. Thanks to that, entering 2026, relevant units can soon deploy forest fire prevention and fighting measures, contributing to protecting forest areas in the area.
