Chungnam, Special Crackdown on Illegal Activities in Forests During Summer Vacation Season

Hikers who illegally harvested forest products in the forest have been caught and are under investigation. Photo is unrelated to the article. Provided by the Korea Forest Service.

[Asia Economy (Naepo) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Chungnam Province will conduct special crackdowns on illegal activities occurring in local forests during the summer vacation season.

The province announced on the 30th that it will organize a mobile inspection team of about 300 people until the end of next month to carry out special crackdowns on illegal occupancy, cooking, waste dumping, and illegal harvesting of forest products at 50 locations including famous mountains and hiking trails in 15 cities and counties.

The key crackdown targets are ▲ illegal occupancy in mountain valleys ▲ illegal activities related to hiking and camping ▲ illegal digging and harvesting of forest products such as moss and forest pollution ▲ habitual dumping and accumulation of waste, garbage, and construction debris.

The province plans to strictly punish violations according to current laws. The current law stipulates that if waste or garbage is dumped illegally in the forest, a fine of up to 1 million KRW will be imposed, and if illegal harvesting of forest products such as wild vegetables and medicinal herbs occurs, offenders may face imprisonment of up to 5 years or a fine of up to 50 million KRW.

Lee Sang-chun, head of the Forest Resources Division of the province, said, “As the number of forest visitors increases, we will strive to establish a proper hiking culture to protect valuable forest resources and pass on our forests to future generations in a healthy state.”

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