Cheongsong-gun Makes All-Out Efforts to Prevent Pine Wilt Disease Damage

Operation of Pine Tree Species Movement Control Post

Cheongsong-gun, Gyeongbuk Province, began operating pine tree movement control posts on March 4 to enhance the efficiency of inspections and monitoring of all pine trees entering and leaving the area, aiming to prevent the artificial spread of pine wilt disease.

Cheongsong-gun operating a patrol post for the movement control of pine trees.

The pine tree movement control posts are operated by selecting two personnel at each of the three locations: Dopyeong-ri in Hyeondong-myeon, Deokgye-ri in Hyeonseo-myeon, and Woljeon-ri in Jinbo-myeon, totaling six people. They will determine whether pine trees are infected and crack down on unauthorized movement.

Pine wilt disease, known as the "AIDS of pine trees," is a fatal disease caused by nematodes about 1 mm in size that invade trees through vector insects. These nematodes rapidly multiply and block the pathways for water and nutrient transport, causing the trees to wither and die.

In Cheongsong-gun, infected trees were first discovered in August 2022; however, through swift and accurate control measures, no further infected trees have been found as of the end of February 2024.

In addition to the pine tree movement control posts, Cheongsong-gun plans to utilize available personnel such as specialized wildfire prevention and suppression teams and pest monitoring and control squads, and will devote great effort to surveillance and control using drones and cutting-edge technologies to prevent and curb the spread of pine wilt disease.

Governor Yoon Kyung-hee stated, "We will prevent the artificial introduction of pine wilt disease and maintain the clean forests befitting the name of Cheongsong-gun, the Oxygen Cafe."

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