Busan's sandy beaches disappearing

[Anchor]

Soon, many people will be visiting this place.

This is Haeundae in Busan, with its blue sea and white sandy beach.

However, this white sand beach is reportedly disappearing rapidly.

Here’s why we need to view the situation seriously, reported by Kim Arnae.

[Report]

This place, where people enjoy walking in the sunshine or leisurely surfing, is Songjeong Beach, famous for marine sports.

However, the width of the sandy beach has noticeably decreased compared to the past.

In 1996, the vast central area of the sandy beach has been pushed in by the sea, and now it has become narrower.

The width of the sandy beach, which reached up to 46 meters in 2013, has decreased to 36 meters in just ten years.

The situation is similar at other beaches in Busan.

In a coastal erosion survey conducted by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, four out of seven beaches in Busan were rated at a "level C", indicating concern.

It is analyzed that rising sea levels, indiscriminate coastal development, and artificial structures are causing the loss of sandy beaches.

[Ryu Joong-hyung/Director of the International Coastal Science Center at Pukyong National University: "Waves propagate to other areas, causing secondary erosion. Downstream, secondary and tertiary erosion occurs, leading to continuous expansion of erosion."]

Coastal erosion increases disaster risks when tsunamis and typhoons occur.

Among the 390 km of coastline in Busan, 48% is rated at the highest disaster risk level 5.

[Clint Willson/Dean of the College of Coastal Environmental Sciences at Louisiana State University: "Work with the natural processes instead of just building a concrete wall or putting in coastal structures like tetrapods or other solutions."]

Although a massive amount of sand is reinforced at the beaches every year, it is not preventing the loss of sandy beaches, and the disaster risk continues to grow.

This is KBS News, Kim Arnae.