The workshop evaluated the project's environmental impact on the protected area in the Mekong Delta province and assessed its carbon sequestration capacity. It also explored the potential and strategies for obtaining carbon credit certification for planted forests. After two years of implementation, IUCN Vietnam and Lang Sen Conservation Area have successfully planted and restored 17 hectares of forest, consisting of 340,000 Melaleuca trees. Furthermore, the project has conducted outreach activities to raise awareness among approximately 500 students in schools within the buffer zone.
Director Truong Thanh Son of Lang Sen Conservation Area emphasized that the project to restore special-use forests has contributed to the revitalization of biodiversity within the conservation area. This has positively impacted various species, including reptiles, aquatic organisms, and birds. Furthermore, the project has contributed to the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions.
The project to restore 17 hectares of flooded Melaleuca forest in Lang Sen is part of a larger Vietnamese government initiative aimed at planting 1.5 million trees, including mangroves, upstream forests, and other vegetation, to expand green spaces and enhance biodiversity. As of 2024, the project has achieved over 80 percent of its target. Moving forward, the company will collaborate with local authorities to nurture the newly planted forest and achieve its full objectives by 2025.
Restoring degraded Melaleuca forest contributes to the recovery of flood-prone ecosystems, freshwater storage, carbon sequestration, and climate regulation. The results of forest restoration projects undertaken by IUCN and Lang Sen Conservation Area should be scaled up to not only contribute to biodiversity recovery but also raise public awareness about conserving wetlands in Vietnam.
