"Fumigation Piles" Left in Mountains Become Kindling for Major Wildfires

2.18 Million Fumigation Piles Created in Five Years, Only 17% Removed
Structural Flaws Exposed in Wildfire Response System
Moon Geumju: "Integrated System for Control and Prevention Is Needed"

Moon Geumju, member of the Democratic Party of Korea.

Criticism has been raised that "fumigation piles" installed to control pine wilt disease are not being removed in a timely manner, instead serving as kindling that reignites wildfires. Contrary to their original purpose, these byproducts are now being pointed to as a major cause of wildfire spread.

According to data submitted by Moon Geumju, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea representing Goheung, Boseong, Jangheung, and Gangjin in South Jeolla Province, to the Korea Forest Service on October 20, the number of pine trees damaged by pine wilt disease surged from 300,000 in 2021 to 1.48 million in 2024-a nearly fivefold increase.

As a result, the number of fumigation piles installed also rose sharply, from 250,000 to 720,000 during the same period. In fact, during the major wildfires in 2025, there were 190,000 fumigation piles in Andong City and 4,500 in Uljugun, with some residents testifying that they witnessed flames reigniting from these piles.

Fumigation piles are supposed to be removed six months after installation, but from May 2020 to May of this year, only 370,000 (17%) out of a total of 2.18 million installed nationwide have actually been removed. The remaining 1.81 million have been left unattended in the mountains.

What is even more serious is that the Korea Forest Service has not even conducted basic research to determine the causal relationship between fumigation piles and wildfire spread, nor has it incorporated information about these piles into wildfire spread prediction systems, revealing a fundamental flaw in the wildfire response framework.

Moon Geumju pointed out, "Although controlling pine wilt disease and preventing wildfires are essentially aspects of forest management, the Korea Forest Service has managed them as separate projects. Even as the fumigation piles stacked for pest control have paradoxically become wildfire fuel, the agency failed to recognize the risk in advance."

He continued, "Fragmented administration that divides the mountain into pieces cannot prevent disasters in the era of climate crisis. A fundamental shift is needed to treat the mountain as a single organism and integrate both pest control and prevention."

Moon Geumju also urged, "A systematic plan for removing fumigation piles must be established, and the impact of their fuel load on wildfire spread should be scientifically analyzed. This information should be incorporated into wildfire spread systems to improve the accuracy of wildfire prediction and response."

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