<산림청> Dresses Disaster Prevention Sabo Projects in 'Eco-Friendly' Attire

A panoramic view of an eco-friendly sabangdam constructed in Hamyang, Gyeongnam. The creation of eco-friendly sabangdam focuses on harmonizing with the surrounding forest landscape without disrupting it. Provided by the Korea Forest Service

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] The Korea Forest Service is aiming to bring changes to the traditional erosion control projects. The core idea is to shift the project’s direction from merely preventing disasters to adopting an eco-friendly approach that considers the surrounding forest environment.

According to the Korea Forest Service on the 9th, erosion control projects refer to a series of activities involving the installation of structures to restore barren land or to prevent and control landslides, runoff of soil and trees, and sand drifting in mountainous areas.

Previously, erosion control projects focused heavily on disaster prevention. However, recently, there has been a strong perception that these projects involve installing ‘structures’ in nature primarily for barren land restoration and disaster prevention. This perspective contrasts with the growing social issue and trend toward eco-friendliness, leading many to view erosion control projects differently.

In response, the Korea Forest Service has prepared and is promoting the “Plan to Revitalize Eco-Friendly Erosion Control Projects,” which aims to convert erosion control projects to eco-friendly methods by 2024. This plan includes developing manuals for design and construction work, developing construction materials, fostering specialized technical personnel in eco-friendly erosion control, and establishing design and construction guidelines.

This measure reflects the field situation where, despite a steady increase in high-level forestry experts such as forest engineers, it has been difficult to find design and construction specialists specifically for eco-friendly erosion control projects.

Eco-friendly erosion control projects maintain the basic framework of disaster prevention while preserving the natural appearance as much as possible. The key is that the structures harmonize with the natural landscape so that hikers and visitors to the forest do not feel discomfort.

Lee Kwang-ho, head of the Landslide Prevention Division at the Korea Forest Service, said, “The Korea Forest Service plans to expand the eco-friendly erosion control project method nationwide. Through this, we will play a role in changing the public perception of erosion control projects from negative to positive and transforming them into disaster prevention facilities that everyone wants to visit.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.