KPL) The Lao government has decided to limit the total land area under rubber trees to just 50,000 hectares in Champassak province and this is part of its attempts to reduce the social and environmental impacts on people.
Champassak province, with a land area of one million hectares, has development potential for two economic sectors, agriculture and tourism.
The bulk of people of this southernmost province work in the agricultual sector, including the rubber plantation. The plantation of rubber trees is growing up on a large scale for commercial purposes, both by locals and foreigners.
Foreign and domestic investors had applied for rubber plantation on 20,000 hectares and their applications had been approved.
According to a local official, the rubber plantations had adverse effects on the environment and society. The provincial administration thus would limit the total area for rubber plantations to 50,000 hectares.
Mr Sonexay Siphandone, governor of Champassak province, reiterated this during the nation wide government members meeting last week. He also said that part of the road map for the development of this province was to concentrate on the agricultural and tourism sectors, amid the global financial crisis.
During his interview with KPL News last week, he said he was trying to make conditions conducive for trade, investment and tourism.
He also carried this out at the personal level, for example, this year he encouraged people to increase their agricultural production, especially for crops like rice, vegetables and fruits, as they were in demand in the world and they could be exported to neighbouring Thailand ?This is part of the effort of the province to decrease the land area under rubber trees and to increase the cultivation of other agricultural crops for local consumption and export? said Mr Sonexay.
He said the limitation on the total area for rubber plantation was because they had a serious impact on the social structure of local communities. They recruited people to work in the rubber plantations and so they could not cultivate food crops on their own farms
this is good news, limiting the area of rubber tree plantation, i can see he is a good and smart man, he seems to be a new generation of the lao government he has good ideas and intentions. champasak is also becoming booming city and with him leading the way i can see its going in a good path.
KPL) The Lao government has decided to limit the total land area under rubber trees to just 50,000 hectares in Champassak province and this is part of its attempts to reduce the social and environmental impacts on people.
Champassak province, with a land area of one million hectares, has development potential for two economic sectors, agriculture and tourism.
The bulk of people of this southernmost province work in the agricultual sector, including the rubber plantation. The plantation of rubber trees is growing up on a large scale for commercial purposes, both by locals and foreigners.
Foreign and domestic investors had applied for rubber plantation on 20,000 hectares and their applications had been approved.
According to a local official, the rubber plantations had adverse effects on the environment and society. The provincial administration thus would limit the total area for rubber plantations to 50,000 hectares.
Mr Sonexay Siphandone, governor of Champassak province, reiterated this during the nation wide government members meeting last week. He also said that part of the road map for the development of this province was to concentrate on the agricultural and tourism sectors, amid the global financial crisis.
During his interview with KPL News last week, he said he was trying to make conditions conducive for trade, investment and tourism.
He also carried this out at the personal level, for example, this year he encouraged people to increase their agricultural production, especially for crops like rice, vegetables and fruits, as they were in demand in the world and they could be exported to neighbouring Thailand ?This is part of the effort of the province to decrease the land area under rubber trees and to increase the cultivation of other agricultural crops for local consumption and export? said Mr Sonexay.
He said the limitation on the total area for rubber plantation was because they had a serious impact on the social structure of local communities. They recruited people to work in the rubber plantations and so they could not cultivate food crops on their own farms
I and others have said it was a bad idea.
They can come out and said it is a bad idea ...............AFTER..........the rubber tree were planted and anyone involved got.......MONEY....after all, the deal was signed and tree were planted. It is not like the tree would be uprooted.
How long did it took for the government to realize the negative ecology and environmental impact of rubber tree plantations? And what concrete support they could give to the people so that they indeed would be encouraged to use the land for other more eco-friendly agricultural produce?
When I went to visit my relative in Kengsadok Paksane, I saw workers cutting down hundreds of big trees along the way entering the village which had never been cut by villagers, I wondered why and how they got the permission from authorities to cut down so many trees ? the village chief said " it has been allowed by the province to a businessman that they called the concession of the government's land for rubber platation " in reallity those businessmen don't care about rubber plantation but only interested in logging the big trees in this area...Oh my god ! I said ! how long of period of time did these trees need to grow like this ? one hundred or two hundred years ? our children will not see those trees anymore but it is the agreement of the government...what can we do ? Our government will never ask simple people like me to do something 555 !
