Tam Tao Proposed Nature Reserve
| Alternative site name(s) None Province(s) Bac Kan Area 9,000 ha Coordinates 22°15' - 22°22'N, 105°32' - 105°38'E Agro-ecological zone North-eastern Decreed by government No Management board established No |
Investment plan prepared No VCF eligibility criteria met A, B Social screening criteria met None Conservation needs assessment prepared No Operational management plan prepared No Tracking tool completed No Yes |
Management history
Tam Tao is not listed on any government decision or official set of proposals regarding the Special-use Forests network (MARD 1997, FPD 2003). However, the establishment of a 9,000 ha nature reserve at Tam Tao has been proposed by Cho Don District People's Committee, by Official Letter No. 102/CV-UB, dated 20 April 1999. To date, however, this proposal has not been approved by Bac Kan Provincial People's Committee, nor has an investment plan been prepared for the site or a management board established. The site is currently under the management of Cho Don District FPD (Bac Kan Provincial FPD in litt. 2003).
Topography and hydrology
Tam Tao proposed nature reserve is located in Dong Lac commune, Cho Don district. The proposed nature reserve is centred on the 1,172 m high Mount Tam Tao. Rivers and streams originating on the north-eastern face of this mountain drain north, and feed Ba Be lake. Rivers and streams originating on the south-western face drain south, and feed the Gam river in Tuyen Quang province. In the east of the proposed nature reserve, there are some areas of limestone karst, although the majority of the topography is of a non-karst nature.
Biodiversity values
Remote sensing data from 1995 indicated that Tam Tao proposed nature reserve previously supported a significant area of natural forest. Brief surveys in 2002 and 2003 by the Creating Protected Areas for Resource Conservation Using Landscape Ecology (PARC) Project, however, indicated that agricultural encroachment is spreading rapidly through the area, and that the site now retains very few biodiversity values.
In the official letter that proposed establishing a nature reserve at Tam Tao, Cho Don District People's Committee reported that the site supports a number of mammal species of conservation importance, the most significant of which is the globally critically endangered, endemic primate, Tonkin Snub-nosed Monkey Rhinopithecus avunculus (Bac Kan Provincial FPD in litt. 2000). The source of this information cannot be verified, however, and the record is probably erroneous.
Conservation issues
The precise boundary of Tam Tao proposed nature reserve has not been defined. However, it would appear that the site is not contiguous with either Nam Xuan Lac proposed nature reserve or Ba Be National Park, because intervening areas are inhabited and intensively cultivated.
Bac Kan Provincial FPD (in litt. 2000) consider the biggest threats to biodiversity at Tam Tao proposed nature reserve to be illegal exploitation of forest products and clearance of forest for shifting cultivation. Hunting remains a threat to any remnant wildlife populations at the site.
Other documented values
The forest at Tam Tao proposed nature reserve has an important role in protecting the watersheds of the Ga river and Ba Be lake.
Related projects
The PARC Project, a full-scale Global Environment Facility (GEF) project, is currently being implemented in two protected areas close to Tam Tao: Na Hang proposed nature reserve and Ba Be National Park. This project aims to employ a landscape ecology approach to conservation in the area. Tam Tao has been surveyed by the project but was rejected as a site for possible conservation intervention, due to extensive encroachment and habitat degradation over recent years.
Conservation needs assessment
A conservation needs assessment has not been conducted for the site.
Operational management plan
An operational management plan has not been prepared for the site.
Eligibility against VCF criteria
The site is currently ineligible for VCF support because it is not under appropriate conservation management.
| Criterion |
Eligibility |
| AI |
NH2 - Northern Highlands Limestone |
| AII |
|
| BI |
Proposed Special-use Forest |
| BII |
Nature Reserve |
| BIII |
Under provincial management |
| CI |
|
| CII |
Social screening requirements
A social screening report has not been prepared for the site.
| Criterion |
Eligibility |
| A |
|
| B |
|
| C |
|
| D |
Literature sources
None.
Click here to download pdf file
