Laos - Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Northern Thailand - page 757

ments in Southeast Asia. Unmanaged vegetation covers an estimated 85% of the country,
and 10% of Laos is original-growth forest with some of the most varied and best-pre-
served ecosystems in Southeast Asia. However, 100 years ago this was closer to 75%,
which provides a clear picture of the effects of relentless logging and slash-and-burn
farming. The government has clear targets to raise the level of forestation to 70% by 2020;
optimistic perhaps, but thanks to the encouraged (some say forced) relocation of tribes
practising slash-and-burn farming to lowland ground, there's a possibility the land may
have a chance to regenerate - at least a little.
The same can't be said of areas like Attapeu Province, which has fallen victim to
rampant commercial logging since 2005. Once home to dense forests, this Vietnam-bor-
dering province is now denuded in huge areas like a lunar landscape. Just a decade ago
Attapeu's remote village of Tahoy was home to a healthy population of tigers; by night
they could allegedly be heard roaring at the edge of the forest. However, today, you're
more likely to see trucks laden with rare timber openly heading over the border into Thail-
and. And, although the flooding of lowland forests can be partly justified in line with the
national goal of creating dams for hydroelectric power and its subsequent wealth genera-
tion (the World Bank estimates that sales of Lao hydropower to Thailand alone could be
around US$2 billion per year once new dams are operating to full capacity), it is arguable
that the same can't be said for the fierce logging of Attapeu Province. Ironically, furniture
makers in Vientiane often complain that they have to buy Lao wood from Thais.
The country's long-term economic goals tend to take precedence over the environment,
and, despite its pledge to retain the country's natural riches by creating 20 National Pro-
tected Areas (NPAs), the government continues to sacrifice swaths of its land to the indus-
trial logging requirements of China. Furthermore, the Laos army is self-funded, which can
often lead to it making questionable decisions when it comes to granting logging licences
and clearing roads as firebreaks.
On the bright side, an estimated half of the country's revenue is generated by tourists,
which gives the landscape a limited insurance policy, and the protection of the country's
forests is written into Laos' constitution. With an internationally created blueprint to mon-
itor and increase ecotourism there may still be some hope for these wild places. If the
country can keep its industrial ambitions in line with its delicate ecosystem, there is a
chance Laos will achieve the economic independence it yearns for without squandering its
natural heritage.