The National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department is planning to apply more digital technology and innovations to its work as the country is gearing towards an innovation-based society under “Thailand 4.0”, the country’s new strategic direction for the next 20 years introduced by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha’s government.

National Parks Bureau director Songtham Suksawang said the country’s ambition had been addressed in the “12th National Social and Economic Development Plan”, under which environmental friendly growth for sustainable development based on application of the technology is addressed as the fourth strategy.

The department is keeping itself up to the challenge as it is part of the role of responsible agencies to help accomplish the strategy, he said.

At present, the agency has a mission to protect forest areas nationwide – around 73 million rai (11.7 million hectares) in total.

It has about 30,000 rangers working almost around the clock, patrolling forests to protect them from various threats, including those posed by influential figures.

Some digital technology, including the so-called NCAPS forest-monitoring system, has recently been deployed in areas prone to illegal phayung logging, like Thaplan National Park in the Dong Phayayen-Khao Yai Forest Complex – a World Heritage site.

The department last week introduced a new command centre, in which the new satellite-based monitoring system has been installed to help monitor forest threats on a wider scale.

National Parks chief Thanya Nettithammakul said he believed the technology could be applied well to the department’s work, and that it would help improve its efficiency in various dimensions, including forest monitoring and protection, as well as tourism capacity boost-up and quality management.

This, he added, would bring about more accountability and transparency in forest management – and security of the country’s natural resources in the end.