The Government has just sent to the National Assembly Standing Committee a resolution to amend Resolution 273 dated July 11, 2022 of the National Assembly Standing Committee on the decision on the policy of changing the purpose of using forests, forest land and rice land from two or more crops of the North-South Eastern road construction project in the 2021-2025 period (phase 2).

According to the content stated in the report, to serve the project construction, the forest area increased by more than 438 hectares compared to Resolution No. 273/NQ-UBTVQH15 (more than 31 hectares of natural forest, nearly 407 hectares of planted forest).

Of which, there are nearly 54 hectares of planned protective forests, more than 283 hectares of planned production forests and more than 100 hectares of forests outside the planning of 3 types of forests.

Compared with Resolution No. 273/NQ-UBTVQH15, the proposed forest land area is reduced by 78 hectares; the rice land area for two or more crops is reduced by nearly 31 hectares.

Specifically, in Ha Tinh province, the area of ​​forest land increased by more than 82 hectares; the area of ​​land for growing rice with two or more crops decreased by nearly 28 hectares.

In Quang Binh province, the area of ​​forest land increased by nearly 83 hectares; the area of ​​land for growing rice from two crops or more increased by more than 1.7 hectares.

In Quang Tri province, the area of ​​forest land increased by approximately 17 hectares; the area of ​​land for growing rice with two or more crops remained the same.

In Quang Ngai province, the area of ​​forest land increased by nearly 18 hectares; the area of ​​land for growing rice from two crops or more increased by more than 42 hectares.

In Binh Dinh province, the area of ​​forest land decreased by more than 247 hectares; the area of ​​land for growing rice with two or more crops increased by more than 24 hectares.

In Phu Yen province, the area of ​​forest land increased by more than 46 hectares; the area of ​​land for growing rice with two or more crops decreased by nearly 13 hectares.

In Khanh Hoa province, the area of ​​newly created forest land decreased by nearly 50 hectares; the area of ​​land for growing rice with two or more crops decreased by nearly 67 hectares.

In Hau Giang province, the area of ​​land for growing rice with two or more crops increased by more than 3 hectares, without using forest land.

In Kien Giang province, the area of ​​land for growing rice with two or more crops has decreased by more than 1 hectare, without using forest land.

In Bac Lieu province, the project does not use forest land and rice land for two or more crops.

In Ca Mau province, the project's rice-growing land area is more than 6 hectares, unchanged from Resolution No. 273/NQ-UBTVQH15.

In Can Tho City, the area of ​​land for growing rice with two or more crops increased by nearly 5.8 hectares, without using forest land.

The reason for the above change is that the North-South Expressway Phase 2 project stretches (721km) through 12 provinces and cities, passing through areas with difficult terrain and complex geology. There have been changes in the implementation process of the technical design step.

On the other hand, the dossier on the policy of changing the purpose of using forests, forest land and rice land for two or more crops submitted to the National Assembly Standing Committee for approval in Resolution 273/2022 was updated with data as of April 2022.

"At this time, the Ministry of Transport has only handed over land acquisition piles to localities at sections with favorable terrain conditions. By July 2022, the handover of all sections with difficult terrain will be completed.

Therefore, the dossier on changing the purpose of using forests, forest land, and rice land for two or more crops submitted to the National Assembly Standing Committee for approval has not been accurately counted by the locality.

When implementing the technical design document preparation step, the design solution is accurately updated according to the terrain, geological and hydrological conditions, leading to changes in the slope of the excavated and filled roof, accurately determining the boundaries and land occupation scope of the project.

Areas with simple terrain conditions have almost no change, mainly changes in areas with difficult terrain, requiring deep excavation and high embankment," the Government's report stated.