5-year Plan for Total Land Purchase in the GBMS areas

May 5, 2005

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Korea Forest Service(Chief, Cho Yon-hwan) helped 1) extend the scope of providing support to residents of GBMS-designated areas, 2) minimize limitations on their private property rights by zoning, and 3) mitigate discomfort from the inhabitants by amending the Law on the Protection of the Great Backbone of Baekdu Mountain System(GBMS) .

Note : The GBMS is stretching across an area of 1,400㎢, from Baedu-san(Mt.) on
the China-DPRK border to Mt. Jiri down south, about 679㎢ of which can be
found in the republic of Korea encompassing 6 provinces.

KFS announced that the bill to amend the Act on the Protection of the Great Backbone of Baekdu Mountain System that has been enacted since January 1 of this year, was passed in the 253rd special session of the National Assembly on May 3 reflecting some legal matters regarding how to support local residents.

As a result of this Amendment, there exists now a new legal ground to effectively conserve the Great Backbone of Baekdu Mountain System(GBMS) both mitigating inconveniences from the residents and protecting their private property rights.

Summary of the Amendment

a. Chief of Korea Forest Service and heads of local governments will establish a
Resident/Landowner Support Plan that supports both the landowners and the
local residents who live in those protection areas.
b. In the protected areas of the GBMS, establishment of farm housing and other
livestock facilities for agro-forestry that are related to residential life, is legally
acceptable.
c. If the landowners make a request for selling their own land in those protection
areas, the central government of Korea (specifically, Korea Forest Service) can
purchase it within the scope of governmental budget, thus their private property
rights can be now protected.

Based on this Amendment, supporting policies is very likely to provide local residents in the GBMS areas with their residential benefits, income increase, and welfare enhancement. Especially through introducing a Request for Land Purchase System, the private land (34,000 hectares estimated) in the protection areas will be entirely purchased in 5 years if the landowners want to sell it out.



A KFS official said, "The importance of public participation like local residents can＇t be overemphasized. The GBMS forms the essential backbone of the Korean Peninsula＇s topography as both a symbol of our national spirit and treasure house for wildlife and culture heritage. That＇s why we＇ve got to conserve it well and pass it down to our future generation."



And he added, "This Amendment reflected opinions and suggestions submitted through 200 public participation forums with ample discussions and negotiations among experts in relevant fields, citizen groups, and local governments. In this regard, zoning procedures will proceed smoothly and we are planning to finish it by the end of June. Lastly, we hope that local residents will keep collaborating with us in a positive way."




Translated by Int＇l Cooperation Division
☎ +82-42-481-4081 (Ms. Lee, Mira)