APPLICATION OF REMOTE SENSING IN
APPLICATION OF REMOTE SENSING IN
FOREST SECTOR OF VIETNAM:
FOREST SECTOR OF VIETNAM:
Status and future direction
Status and future direction
Pham Manh Cuong (Dr. Sc.)
Pham Manh Cuong (Dr. Sc.)
FOREST DEPARTMENT (FD)
FOREST DEPARTMENT (FD)
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD)
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD)
Overview
Overview
1. Forest administration system in
Vietnam
2. Information needed for forest
management in Vietnam
3. Application of RS in forest
management in Vietnam: Past and
present
4. Future Direction
I. Forests and Forest
I. Forests and Forest
Administration System in
Administration System in
Vietnam
Vietnam


Vietnam is mostly located in the tropical region;

tropical forest in the north and
at high altitudes, mangrove forest along
at high altitudes, mangrove forest along
coastline;
coastline;


Complex terrain and diversity of forest types
Complex terrain and diversity of forest types
cause difficulty in forest management.
cause difficulty in forest management.
1.1
1.1
Forest Changes in Vietnam


Forest cover has changed dramatically and
Forest cover has changed dramatically and
dynamically over the time and space;
dynamically over the time and space;


The changes are not always in progressive,
The changes are not always in progressive,
deforestation versus reforestation;
deforestation versus reforestation;


Most residual natural forests are located in the
Most residual natural forests are located in the

20
25
30
35
40
45
50
Forest Coverage (%)
Population Rural pop. Forest cover

1.2 Projection of forest cover changes in
Vietnam
 Strengthen FM and reforestation: 14.3 mill ha in 2010
(43%) – 16.24 mill ha 2020 (47%);
 In 2010: all forests are allocated to HHs & economic
entities; in 2020: permanent real forest estate
 Afforestation: 1.0 mill. (2006-2010);1.5 mill ha in 2011-
2020;
 Re-planning forests:
9 Production forest: 8.34 mill ha of which 4.15 ha of
forest plantations, 30% FA receives FSC
9 Protection forest: 5.68 mill ha
9 Special-use forest: 2.16 mill ha
 Wood production: 20-24 mill m3/year; wood and furniture
processing: $7.8 mill ha
 MARD vs. MONRE
 Functional agencies inside MARD:
9 Forest Department (FD): National Forest
Management, NFIA Program
9 Forest Protection Department (FPD): Protection

use forest;
 Forest Inventory and Planning Institute:
National forest inventory and assessment,
every 5 year – FIPI’s database.
2.3 Issues and Challenges
 Lack of close coordination: data
discrepancies & data sharing;
 Insufficient information: incomplete and
outdated;
 Large geographical extend and difficult to
access (physical and political aspects).
Conventional techniques: time-consuming
and costly;
 Insufficient capacity: in collecting,
analyzing, synthesizing and reporting
information, especially at local levels;
 Expensive spatial data (maps and high
resolution remote sensing imagery.
III. Application of remote sensing
III. Application of remote sensing
technology in forestry sector of
technology in forestry sector of
Vietnam: Past and present
Vietnam: Past and present
 1960s – 1970s: application of aerial photographs on
establishment of forest cover maps and forest planning
maps for some State Forest Enterprises (SFE) in the
North;
 1980 – 1990: starting utilization of satellite images from
former Soviet Union and US (Landsat) to make forest

 Quality was not satisfied the decision-makers and
not every sufficient for policy formulation
processes.
3.1 In the past
Mô tả mẫu trên ảnh (Landsat TM)
Ngày chụp: 17 - 10 - 2001
TT rừng: Rừng kín thường xanh lá rộng
Địa điểm: Kôn Hà Nừng - Gia Lai
Độ cao: 1.480 m
Mô tả: màu nâu đỏ thẫm, đồng đều, mịn
Vị trí phân bố: cách xa khu dân cư và đường
chính.
Mô tả ngoại nghiệp:
TT rừng: closed evergreen broadleaved
forest (IIIA3)
Địa điểm: Liên hiệpKônHàNừng
Độ tàn che: 0,8
Tổ thành: Sến, Hoàng đàn, Giổi, Re,
Thông nàng
Các thông số cơ bản: H = 19m, G =
19m
2
,
D = 27 cm, M = 200 - 230 m
3
Land-cover map derived from
Landsat ETM+
Land-cover map derived from
QuickBird image
 2006-2010: is now implementing 4th cycle

financial support from Japanese and Italian
Governments
4.1 Demands and Legal Supports
4.1 Demands and Legal Supports
 Application of very high resolution satellite
images (SPOT 5, ALOS, IKONOS, QuickBird,
etc.) in land use/forest cover mapping, forest
planning, forest assessment and forestland
allocation, FLEGT at micro level;
 Widenning the application: FIPI + Sub-FIPIs,
FD, FPD, FSIV;
 Strengthening capacity of key Institutions in
application of RS in MARD
 Strengthening the cooperation: governmental
agencies (MONRE), NGOs and international
organizations.
4.2 Improvement in deriving information
4.2 Improvement in deriving information