Forest Service Chief Choi Byung-am: "We Will Realize the Dream of 'Forestry Management' Where Forests and People Coexist"

Choi Byung-am, the Commissioner of the Korea Forest Service, is introducing the promotion plan for 'Forestry Management,' one of the key topics in this year's work plan. Photo by Korea Forest Service

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] “We will make this year the first year of forestry management and open a future where forests and people coexist.” On the 12th, Forest Service Chief Choi Byung-am said this in an interview with Asia Economy.

South Korea has cultivated lush forests comparable to any other country through reforestation after enduring the forest hardships during the Japanese colonial period and the Korean War. However, behind the quantitative expansion of forests, fast-growing tree-centered afforestation and forest damage buried under development profits have made coexistence between forests and people difficult. Although successful in forming forests in the short term, there was a lack in nurturing and managing forests as resources, and human greed erected barriers to preserving forests as future assets.

The Forest Service plans to place more emphasis on capturing the two goals of maintaining forest health and utilization to overcome these practical limitations. Let’s take a look at the direction of forest policy that Chief Choi envisions for this year.

◆ What are the values and policy directions of the Forest Service for the new year?

- The Forest Service recently announced its new year work plan outlining the direction of forest policy for this year. The vision of the work plan is “Transition to an era of forestry management where forests and people coexist.” Our forests have passed through the era of afforestation and forest cultivation and have now grown into forests ready for harvest, entering the full-fledged era of forestry management. The Forest Service will consider what positive messages mature forest resources can convey to the public’s health promotion and quality of life improvement, and will strive to create conditions where forests and people can coexist without shortcomings.

◆ What does the era of forestry management mean and what are its goals?

- Forests have intrinsic value as major carbon sinks and reservoirs of biodiversity. Especially recently, reflecting the climate crisis, countries worldwide recognize the importance of forests and are considering ways to conserve and utilize them. Forestry management focuses on maintaining the fundamental functions of forests while enabling harmonious utilization in coexistence with people. As part of forestry management, the Forest Service plans to lead the expansion of new afforestation and the creation of forest resources with strong adaptability to climate change this year.

◆ With 63% of the land covered by forests, is new afforestation necessary?

- After the Japanese colonial period and the Korean War, South Korea conducted afforestation mainly with fast-growing species such as Larch pine, which led to successful reforestation and erosion control through quantitative forest growth. However, the consensus in the forestry sector now is that focus should shift from quantitative growth to qualitative improvement of forest resources. For example, afforestation by forest function, forest tending, and resource utilization processes should establish a virtuous cycle system. New afforestation should be understood as part of creating function-specific forests such as urban forests, school forests, and fine dust blocking forests, as well as the generational replacement of trees that have stopped or slowed growth, with the main purpose of strengthening the public functions of forests.

Kwon Byeong-am, the Administrator of the Korea Forest Service, is emphasizing the functions and roles of forests in the context of the climate crisis. Photo by Korea Forest Service

◆ What are the Forest Service’s ‘carbon neutrality’ policies and goals amid the climate crisis?

The Forest Service finalized and announced the ‘2050 Carbon Neutrality Forestry Sector Promotion Strategy’ on the 6th. This was about three months after the government declared ‘2050 Carbon Neutrality’ as a national vision in October last year. The promotion strategy contains major policy directions for the forestry sector to respond to the climate crisis and achieve national carbon neutrality goals. The core of the strategy is to contribute to carbon neutrality through establishing a virtuous cycle management system of planting, nurturing, and utilizing trees, and through forest conservation and restoration. Based on this strategy, the Forest Service plans to increase carbon absorption to 23.6 million tons by 2050 and enable 3 million tons of forest biomass to be used in the energy transition sector.

◆ What is the significance and progress of the forestry direct payment system to be implemented from this year?

- The ‘Forestry and Forest Public Interest Direct Payment System,’ which was the hope of about 330,000 forestry workers, passed the National Assembly plenary session last year. The Forest Service places great significance on the passage of the Forestry Direct Payment Act through the parliamentary standing committee based on 16 years of discussions. Forests create public interest values such as disaster prevention, biodiversity conservation, and carbon dioxide absorption and storage. However, forestry household income is 37.11 million KRW annually, which is lower than agricultural households at 45.03 million KRW and fishing households at 53.19 million KRW. Unlike agriculture and fisheries, which have introduced direct payment systems, forestry has not guaranteed stable income for forestry workers who rely on forests as their main production means. Introducing a direct payment system in forestry is considered a timely task. When the forestry direct payment system is fully implemented in October this year, it is expected to greatly improve the treatment of forestry workers and help revitalize forestry management. The Forest Service plans to maximize policy effects by preparing subordinate laws and detailed guidelines and establishing cooperative systems with related organizations to ensure smooth implementation of the forestry direct payment system.

◆ What are the follow-up measures after the improvement of the timber harvesting system?

- Last year was a year of significant value conflicts surrounding timber harvesting. While there is little disagreement on the need to harmoniously conserve and utilize forests, perceptions of timber harvesting vary greatly depending on viewpoints. In this regard, the Forest Service held discussions with forest owners, forestry workers, the timber industry, and environmental groups in September last year to reach a consensus and announced improvement measures for the timber harvesting system. The improvement plan includes changing large-scale clear-cutting methods to environmentally friendly thinning methods, strengthening public management and supervision before and after timber harvesting, and transparently disclosing information on timber harvesting methods. This year, the Forest Service plans to have the amended law pass the National Assembly in the first half and ensure timely enforcement of subordinate laws. Additionally, it will distribute work manuals for newly introduced pre-feasibility studies and monitoring before and after timber harvesting to the field to enhance efficiency in timber harvesting projects.

◆ How will the Forest Service expand infrastructure to meet the increased demand for forest welfare?

- The annual number of forest welfare beneficiaries increased from 8,852 in 2017 to 16,113 last year, and it is expected that 17,278 people will receive forest welfare this year. Reflecting the increasing demand for forest welfare every year, the Forest Service is also striving to provide forest welfare services that meet public expectations. First, related facilities increased from 617 in 2017 to 946 last year. This year, 41 more facilities will be added. The number of forest welfare service voucher recipients will increase from 44,000 last year (15,000 in 2017) to 50,000, and the number of sharing forests will increase from 981 last year (708 in 2017) to 1,066 this year. The Forest Service will do its best to expand the scope so that forests can become a benefit accessible to all citizens and to improve user satisfaction by developing and operating forest welfare programs tailored to the characteristics of each facility.

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