[Uiseong Wildfire One Month On]④"Prevent Man-Made Disasters and Block Environmental Factors Through Thinning"

Sparks that originate from human hands can lead to forest fires. This is why the prevailing view is that forest fires are considered man-made disasters. Regardless of whether a forest fire is caused by an accident, if a perpetrator is identified, they will face punishment. However, if intentionality is not proven, the level of punishment is low, and even if prosecuted, most cases result only in suspended sentences. For this reason, there is ongoing criticism that penalties are too lenient. Since forest fires often start from human actions, prevention is the top priority. Experts also suggest that it is essential to establish countermeasures to block the environmental factors that contribute to wildfires from the outset.

A forest fire monitor is conducting guidance activities to prevent forest fires by detecting the burning of rice field and farmland ridges. Burning of rice field and farmland ridges has been identified as the second most common cause of forest fires in the past 10 years, following arson by visitors. Provided by the Korea Forest Service

◆The 'Bad Hands' Revealed in Forest Fire Statistics by Cause= Forest fires can easily occur due to a single careless mistake. The Uiseong wildfire also appears to have been caused by the carelessness of a visitor paying respects at a grave. This is not unique to the Uiseong wildfire. Most forest fires to date have started from human actions.

According to the Korea Forest Service, the average annual number of forest fires from 2015 to 2024 was 546. When broken down by cause, fires started by visitors accounted for 171.3 cases (31%), making it the most common cause. This was followed by trash burning at 67.5 cases (13%), burning of rice field and farmland ridges at 60.3 cases (11%), careless disposal of cigarette butts at 34.8 cases (7%), fires spreading from building fires at 34.1 cases (6%), and fires caused by visitors paying respects at graves at 17 cases (3%).

The "other" category, which is classified separately, accounted for 177.5 cases, or 32% of the total. This category includes unknown causes, workplace accidents, negligence during reprocessing, and arson. Ultimately, whether accidental or intentional, statistics show that the vast majority of forest fires begin with human actions.

For this reason, there have been ongoing calls to strengthen penalties for those responsible for causing forest fires. Currently, regulations stipulate that even if a person accidentally burns someone else's forest, or accidentally burns their own forest and endangers public safety, they can face up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 30 million won.

However, in cases of accidents, if intentionality is not proven, penalties tend to be light, and even if prosecuted, most cases result only in suspended sentences. In response, there have recently been moves within the political sphere to amend relevant laws to allow for prison sentences of up to five years for those who accidentally cause forest fires.

The multipurpose wildfire suppression vehicle is a vehicle jointly developed by the Korea Forest Service, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and the Ministry of Science and ICT in September last year. It is equipped with both wildfire suppression and life rescue functions. This vehicle is evaluated to have contributed to minimizing human casualties by effectively controlling intense flames and widely spread fire at the Uiseong wildfire site while also eliminating blind spots in emergency medical services. Image of the multipurpose wildfire suppression vehicle. Photo by Korea Forest Service

◆Forest Authorities Focusing on Prevention and Suppression= As forest fires have become larger, more frequent throughout the year, and have spread nationwide, forest authorities have become increasingly active. Recently, forest authorities have been placing greater emphasis on cause-specific prevention efforts and strengthening the capabilities of firefighting resources.

Since last year, the Korea Forest Service has been cooperating with the Rural Development Administration, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, local governments, rural development organizations, and agricultural groups to support the shredding of agricultural by-products in rural areas. This reflects the intention to fundamentally eliminate the causes of burning-related forest fires, as burning accounts for a significant proportion of forest fire statistics by cause. The planned amount of burning for this year is 201,000 tons, an increase of about 21% compared to 166,000 tons last year.

It is also notable that new firefighting resources have been developed and deployed in the field to respond effectively to forest fire situations. For example, the multipurpose wildfire suppression vehicle and wildfire retardant played a significant role at the Uiseong wildfire site.

During the Uiseong wildfire, the multipurpose wildfire suppression vehicle used its 2,000-liter high-capacity water tank and high-performance pump to supply water to portable reservoirs, supporting the continuous firefighting activities of ground crews. In addition, utilizing its medical equipment, the multipurpose vehicle helped evacuate more than 10 residents from the fire in Danchon-myeon, Uiseong County. This year, the Korea Forest Service plans to deploy 16 of these vehicles in areas vulnerable to forest fires so they can be used in disaster situations.

The wildfire retardant, which coats tree surfaces to suppress the spread of fire and dissipate heat, has helped protect key national facilities from damage. At the Uiseong wildfire, it was mainly used to protect facilities such as transmission towers, temples, and Hahoe Village, as well as to establish firebreaks and prevent the spread of fire in Jirisan National Park. The total amount of wildfire retardant used at the Uiseong site was 134 tons.

Experts suggest that to protect and maintain dense forests from wildfires, it is important to renew with fire-resistant tree species and perform thinning to break the environmental links of wildfires. Provided by Korea Forest Service

◆"Breaking the Environmental Links of Wildfires Is Crucial"= Multiple forestry experts have also emphasized the importance of breaking the link between the factors that cause wildfires and the environmental conditions that allow them to spread.

Jae-Soo Bae, former director of the National Institute of Forest Science, suggested, "To prevent the spread of wildfires, it is necessary to convert forests to fire-resistant broadleaf species and to establish fire-resistant broadleaf forests within existing pine plantations as a wildfire prevention measure."

Separately, Park Jeonghee, president of the Korea Forestry Association, stated at a recent forum held at the National Assembly, "Looking at cases of wildfire damage in the United States, it is clear that areas with lower forest density suffered less damage," and added, "Thinning trees to control forest density can help prevent the spread of wildfires."

They share the common understanding that measures must be taken to ensure that trees do not serve as fuel to intensify wildfires during such events.

In this regard, Ko Kiyeon, president of the Wildfire Society, explained, "A recent characteristic of wildfires is that they are heavily influenced by climate change (high temperatures, dryness, strong winds) and geographical or regional factors," and added, "Since these are not problems that can be solved by humans in a short period of time, the importance of wildfire prevention is heightened."

He further stated, "Wildfires are not an irresistible force of nature, but a man-made disaster," and emphasized, "If we can prevent the 'environmental factors' that contribute to the occurrence and spread of wildfires from combining, we can reduce wildfire damage."

Breaking the environmental factors of wildfires means both preventing "bad hands" from causing sparks to spread to forests, and proactively preventing large-scale wildfires through preemptive renewal with fire-resistant species and thinning.