Nakdonggang Environmental Office Operates Task Force Dedicated to Eradicating Ecosystem-Disrupting Nutria

Nutria, an invasive species disrupting the ecosystem, inhabiting mainly the Nakdong River basin.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Woo Jong-wook] The Nakdong River Basin Environmental Office announced on the 17th that it will take efficient measures to eradicate nutria, an invasive species inhabiting the Nakdong River system.

The Nakdong River Environmental Office decided to form and operate a dedicated eradication team of 10 members to eliminate nutria.

The dedicated team will operate in Busan and Gyeongnam areas including Changwon, Miryang, and Gimhae.

If nutria are directly sighted or if there is damage to crops, reports can be made to the Nakdong River Basin Environmental Office or the relevant local government, and the eradication team will be immediately deployed to carry out eradication.

Additionally, to increase the efficiency of nutria eradication, a nutria purchase system will be operated until the end of the year.

If captured individuals (carcasses) and payment application forms are submitted to the Nutria Reception Center or the local government in charge of the capture area, 20,000 KRW will be paid per individual.

The purchase target areas include Buk-gu, Saha-gu, Gangseo-gu, and Sasang-gu in Busan, as well as Changwon-si, Jinju-si, Miryang-si, Gimhae-si, Yangsan-si, Uiryeong-gun, Haman-gun, Changnyeong-gun, and Hapcheon-gun in Gyeongnam.

The use of firearms, crossbows, bows (compound), or poisons (pesticides) for capture is prohibited.

Since 2014, the Nakdong River Office has established a cooperative system with related local governments, continuously operating the eradication team and purchase system, achieving the eradication of approximately 31,000 nutria individuals.

Director Lee Ho-jung stated, “We will continue to make sustained efforts in cooperation with related agencies to completely eradicate nutria inhabiting the Nakdong River basin.”

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