Son Tra Peninsula.
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The inspection of projects in Son Tra Peninsula was spurred by public concern over the mass development of buildings, hotels, resorts and villas on the peninsula.
In 2017, members of the public also called for a halt to the tourism master plan, which had aimed to build 1,920 villas, 24 bungalows and 1,600 luxury hotel rooms by 2030, on the 4,439ha Son Tra Nature Reserve.
Up to now, 18 out of 25 planned hotels and resorts on the Son Tra Mountain have been approved by the city on a total of 1,220ha, while 137 private villas, of which more than 20 villas have already been built, are planned on 2.4ha in the reserve.
According to a 2004 law on forest protection and a 2008 law on biodiversity conservation, all land-use changes and forest land encroachment in the nature reserve are banned. Any change of land-use purpose in the Son Tra forest must be decided by the Prime Minister.
The reserve is unique in Vietnam and the world. Its biodiversity ranges from primary forests to ocean dunes, with more than 1,000 plants and 370 animal species. More than 1,300 red-shanked douc langurs (Pygathryx nemaeus), which are critically endangered and found only in east-central Laos and Vietnam, live in the Son Tra Nature Reserve.
