Korea Forest Service to Intensify Crackdown on Illegal Activities in Forests During April-May

The Korea Forest Service announced on the 30th that it will intensify crackdowns on illegal activities in forests in line with the increase in visitors entering the mountains during April and May.

The crackdown will be conducted by joint and independent inspection teams composed of judicial police officers from the Korea Forest Service and local government forestry departments, petition forest protection staff, forest drone surveillance teams, and forest protection support groups. The purpose is to prevent forest damage and the risk of forest fires caused by the collection of forest products in advance.

Forest law enforcement officers are taking action against visitors who illegally harvest forest products in the forest. Photo by Korea Forest Service

The main targets of the crackdown are ▲ unauthorized collection of wild vegetables and medicinal herbs without the consent of the forest owner ▲ unauthorized conversion of forest land for cultivation ▲ prohibited acts within forest protection zones and unauthorized entry into habitats of rare plants.

Additionally, the Korea Forest Service emphasizes that entering restricted forest areas without permission, lighting fires or smoking in the forest, and carrying fire-related equipment into the forest are also subject to enforcement.

The Korea Forest Service plans to strictly punish illegal activities detected during the crackdown according to relevant laws. Penalties for illegal activities in forests include ▲ up to 5 years imprisonment or fines up to 50 million KRW for unauthorized forest land conversion or theft of forest products ▲ up to 3 years imprisonment or fines up to 30 million KRW for unauthorized logging ▲ fines up to 1 million KRW for illegal dumping of waste in forests.

During the crackdown period in April and May last year, a total of 815 illegal activities were detected, of which 336 cases (353 individuals) were booked and sent to the prosecution. Additionally, fines totaling 54 million KRW were imposed on 426 cases.

Kim Ki-hyun, head of the Forest Protection Division at the Korea Forest Service, said, “Cases of punishment for illegal activities in forests continue every year. The Korea Forest Service will strictly punish illegal activities detected during crackdowns according to procedures to protect valuable forest resources, and we ask for the active cooperation of the public in forest protection.”