Korea Forest Service to Expand Forest Roads by 500 km Annually Until 2030

The Korea Forest Service plans to strengthen its wildfire response capabilities by expanding forest road networks.

On April 25, the Korea Forest Service announced that it will expand wildfire suppression forest roads by 500 km each year until 2030, increasing the current 856 km to 3,856 km.

Wildfire suppression forest roads are constructed to be 5 meters wide, which is wider than the 3-meter width of standard forest roads. Additionally, water intake stations and spaces for firefighting operations are installed along these roads, maximizing the effectiveness of wildfire suppression efforts.

Difference in damage scale depending on the presence of forest road installation confirmed at the 2022 Miryang wildfire site. Provided by Korea Forest Service

In the case of the 2022 Uljin wildfire, the use of wildfire suppression forest roads allowed firefighting personnel and equipment to access the wildfire site quickly. Even during nighttime hours when firefighting helicopters could not be operated, the presence of forest roads enabled continued firefighting operations, which helped protect the Geumgangsong pine forest.

Accordingly, the Korea Forest Service plans to prioritize the expansion of wildfire suppression forest roads in high-risk areas such as the East Coast and Gyeongnam and Gyeongbuk regions.

The East Coast and Yeongnam regions, which are considered representative large wildfire-prone areas, have experienced several major wildfires since 2002. For example, the 2022 Uljin wildfire and this year's wildfires in Gyeongnam and Gyeongbuk caused significant damage to forests, facilities, and human life.

The Korea Forest Service expects that expanding wildfire suppression forest roads in these areas will dramatically enhance the ability to respond to large-scale wildfires.

The agency also addressed the negative views expressed by some environmental groups regarding the additional installation of forest roads. The Korea Forest Service stated, "Some claim that forest roads are not effective for wildfire suppression, but such arguments lack scientific and empirical evidence," adding, "On the contrary, the effectiveness of forest roads has been clearly demonstrated in various wildfire cases."

As an example, the Korea Forest Service explained that in the 2022 Miryang wildfire, the area with forest roads in the northwest suffered relatively little damage, while the central and southern areas without forest roads experienced broader and more extensive damage.

In particular, during the large-scale wildfire in the Gyeongnam region last month, the presence or absence of forest roads made a significant difference. At the wildfire site in Sancheong and Hadong, Gyeongnam, which broke out on March 21, the limited number of forest roads resulted in a total firefighting time of 214 hours. However, a wildfire that occurred a week later in Hadong (Okjong-myeon) was contained within 24 hours thanks to the relatively greater number of forest roads, minimizing the damage.

The effectiveness of forest roads during wildfires has also been scientifically proven. According to an analysis by the National Institute of Forest Science, when forest roads are present, it takes only 4 minutes to reach the wildfire site over a distance of 2 km, whereas traveling on foot without forest roads takes 48 minutes, indicating a significant difference in response time.

Furthermore, in areas with forest roads, it is possible to transport large quantities of heavy firefighting equipment weighing over 30 kg, such as pumps and hose reels, which can improve nighttime firefighting efficiency by nearly five times.

Park Eunsik, Director General of Forest Industry Policy at the Korea Forest Service, stated, "It is crucial to suppress wildfires quickly and efficiently at an early stage to prevent small sparks from developing into large-scale wildfires," adding, "The Korea Forest Service will do its utmost to expand wildfire suppression forest roads and enhance wildfire response capabilities."

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