FOREST LOGGING PROJECT DISPUTE

[Anchor Lead]

A massive logging project in the Jirisan Mountain area has come under fire for causing forest damage. However, some say that tree felling can contribute to environmental protection.

[Pkg]

​At the Odojae Pass at the northern entrance to Jirisan Mountain... a once dense forest has disappeared, leaving the area looking quite deserted. In another part of the mountain, you can see bare patches of soil. Steep mountain slopes have been turned into cliffs. Broken boulders and cut logs are scattered everywhere. Local residents are devastated to see an ancient forest, which took decades of work to create, being demolished recklessly.

[Soundbite] RYU JAE-DONG(LOCAL RESIDENT) : "It's heartbreaking to see a forest disappear in just 30 or 40 years, less than one generation."

Locals are worried about the damaged scenery and the higher risk of landslides, as logging firms mostly cut down larches because of their profitability. In Hamyang, Gyeongsangnam-do Province alone, more than two million square meters of forestland, equal to some 300 soccer fields, was cleared last year. The revised law on forest resources reduced the final cutting age of oaks from the previous 50 years to just half of that, while the cutting age of larches and pine trees was slashed by ten years each. This was done to reduce reliance on timber imports by felling large trees.

[Soundbite] MOON TAE-MYUNG(LOCAL RESIDENT) : "They say they will plant new trees, but it will take 40 to 50 years to see the result. I will not live to see a lush forest again."

Some also say that cutting off mature trees and creating new forests is more beneficial for the environment.

[Soundbite] HAN SONG-HYUN(OFFICIAL AT HAMYANG-GUN COUNTY GOVERNMENT) : "Newly plated young trees absorb carbon in the air, which is better for environmental protection."

The controversy surrounding tree logging in the Jirisan Mountain area continues to escalate.