Incheon City will operate a rapid response team until November to address unpleasant odors and walking inconveniences caused by ginkgo tree fruits in the autumn season.
The city plans to deploy 97 members of the rapid response team across nine districts and counties, excluding Ongjin County, which does not have ginkgo trees. The team will harvest ginkgo fruits early and clean up fallen fruits. Each district and county will use shaking harvesters and collection nets to focus maintenance efforts on areas with heavy pedestrian traffic, such as bus stops, crosswalks, school routes, and traditional markets.
The city will analyze the contamination levels of the ginkgo fruits, including heavy metals and pesticides, to confirm their safety before either donating them or disposing of them as waste.
Currently, there are approximately 230,000 street trees in the Incheon area, of which 43,726 trees (18.9%) are ginkgo trees. In particular, ginkgo fruits that have fallen to the ground cause unpleasant odors and are a major cause of safety accidents for pedestrians.
An official from Incheon City stated, "By harvesting the ginkgo fruits in advance, we will minimize inconvenience to citizens caused by odors and create a pleasant walking environment."
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