Environment and natural resources

Environment Minister Say Sam Al on February 6 said he would seek approval for a ban on the import of chainsaws in a bid to tackle the country’s persistent illegal logging trade. Mr. Sam Al announced his plans during a morning meeting at the ministry, ...

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry will this year closely monitor domestic and foreign investment in this sector as it believes that many companies have not implemented the agreements made or complied with stipulated feasibility study methods. The ministry will strictly apply management measures to ...

Anti-globalization and protectionist attitudes are increasing in some countries, but Vietnam still has an open economy. This means big challenges for Vietnam in upcoming days. US President Donald Trump on January 23 officially pulled out of the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership, a move that The New ...

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha last week asked reporters why non-governmental organisations, environmental activists and academics continue to protest against the planned blasting of rapids in the Mekong River. He said many of these protesters are outsiders, meaning people who do not live by the riverside, do ...

Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith has pledged to find solutions to the many land issues that have emerged and the government has formed a taskforce committee to investigate the problems and resolve them. The committee will investigate land concessions, the transfer of land use rights in ...

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has asked four central provinces to provide regular reports on marine environment quality. The provinces of Hà Tĩnh, Quảng Bình, Quảng Trị and Thừa Thiên Huế have been told that they should seriously implement the instruction to monitor ...

Some 800,000 foreign tourists last year came to Thailand with the specific purpose of visiting villages, natural sites, communities, and hilltribes across the Kingdom, while more than 2 million Thai tourists also pursued these interests. They mingled well with like-minded travellers who cherished the “ecotourism” ...

Ban Nam Chang village in Nan province has become a pioneer in tackling the seasonal haze problem in the North by changing its farming practices. With summer set to begin soon, farmers will soon be setting their fields on fire to clear land for the ...

Ten sawmills located near and inside forest areas have been closed and removed, while 18 others are in the process of being removed as part of the government’s crackdown on sawmill operations and illegal logging. The closures came after the government recently issued an order ...

In November last year, the Philippines declared its largest critical habitat yet. Located in the long, narrow Philippine island of Palawan, the new Cleopatra’s Needle Critical Habitat is spread across 41,350 hectares (more than 100,000 acres). The second largest critical habitat, Carmen Critical Habitat for ...