Recognizing this, functional forces have proactively strengthened patrols and control, while coordinating closely with local authorities to propagate and raise community awareness. These efforts contribute significantly to maintaining safety for forests before the dry season.

After merging administrative units, the Na Sang Forest Ranger Division was assigned the task of managing and protecting forests in 5 communes: Mường Pồn, Na Sang, Si Pa Phìn, Pa Ham, and Nậm Nèn. This is an area with a large surface and complex terrain, causing many difficulties in patrol and control work. Moreover, at the end of the year, the risk of illegal forest exploitation and illegal trading and transportation of forest products tends to increase. Faced with that situation, the Na Sang Forest Ranger Division has strengthened coordination with local authorities to organize mobile propaganda and sign forest protection commitments with every village and household group.

Lường Văn Toàn, Head of the Na Sang Forest Ranger Division, stated: Clearly aware of the pressure to keep forests at the end of the year, the unit has developed a plan for reinforced patrols in the final months, arranging forces on duty, blocking, and controlling key routes. The unit continues to direct local forest rangers to advise on organizing propaganda on forest protection and Forest Fire Prevention and Control (FFPC) in Kinh, Hmong, and Thai languages on loudspeaker systems. Besides, functional forces also strengthen inspection of public works and projects to timely detect and prevent violations regarding forests and forest land, contributing to ensuring the safety of forest resources at year-end.

The final months of the year are the time when subjects often take advantage of dry weather to clear and burn forests for cultivation, encroach on forest land, or illegally exploit and transport forest products. Along with that, FFPC work in the province becomes even more urgent. Faced with that situation, the Department of Agriculture and Environment issued a document directing the entire sector to strengthen the implementation of FFPC solutions and forest management and protection for the 2025 - 2026 dry season, requiring forest owners, ranger forces, and grassroots authorities to seriously implement many key tasks.

According to the Department’s direction, forest management boards have promoted propaganda and dissemination of laws and knowledge on FFPC to the people. Besides, units must strengthen forest patrols and inspections, organize 24/24 hour duty when forest fire forecasts are at levels III, IV, V; arrange guard forces at key positions to timely detect and stop forest infringement acts. The Department also requires units to proactively arrange funds for repairing and investing in FFPC works, equipping vehicles, and effectively implementing the “4 on-the-spot” motto.

Determining the importance of forest protection work at year-end, the Management Board of the Mường Nhé Nature Reserve proactively deployed early and synchronous solutions to prevent acts of infringing on forests and FFPC. In particular, the Mường Nhé Nature Reserve has coordinated closely with buffer zone communes to manage people entering forests. Promoting propaganda and guiding people in the area to use fire safely when burning fields, absolutely not burning during hot, low humidity times; at the same time, they are required to temporarily suspend all activities involving fire use when there is a warning from functional agencies.

Đào Công Tiến, Deputy Director of the Management Board of the Mường Nhé Nature Reserve, said: “Following superior direction, we also proactively built an FFPC plan and prepared necessary conditions to ensure the best service when a fire occurs. Accordingly, the unit organized reviews of high-fire-risk forest areas, arranged patrol forces along routes; and simultaneously coordinated with commune authorities, relevant forces, and the community to propagate to people about forest fire risks and relevant legal regulations. Every week, working groups organize field inspections, make initial records for points with signs of violation, and report timely.”

For grassroots-level authorities, the provincial Department of Agriculture and Environment requested the commune People’s Committees to establish Commune-level Steering Committees for FFPC, assigning specific tasks to each member and forest owner to ensure effective direction organization. Communes must be on duty 24/24 hours during peak periods, arrange guard forces in high-fire-risk forest areas, strictly manage people entering and leaving forests; at the same time review unallocated forest areas, build FFPC plans according to regulations of Decree No.156/2018/ND-CP. In addition, localities need to continue checking and supervising the use of fire in vegetation treatment, strengthening propaganda in many languages suitable for local residential communities, especially ethnic minorities.

The increasingly complex weather situation and prolonged drought make forest management, protection, and FFPC work difficult. With high proactiveness, specialized agencies coordinate closely with forest ranger forces and local authorities to strengthen inspection, supervision, and promote propaganda to the community. The drastic and synchronous implementation of solutions will contribute significantly to limiting forest fire risks and ensuring safety for the forest ecosystem in the province during the 2025 - 2026 dry season.