• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.166-171
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• 2003

A total of 498 agricultural reservoirs ranging from $164{\times}10^3\;m^3$ to $253{\times}10^6\;m^3$ in storage volume were investigated from 1990 to 2001 with respect to Chl-${\alpha}$, COD concentration and pollutant loading of BOD, TN, and TP. The lakes and reservoirs could be classified to 4 types using the relationships between the ratio of storage volume per water surface area(ST/WS) and Chl-${\alpha}$ concentration. It is recommended that the improvement of polluted lakes should be performed in the order of integrated consolidation type ${\rightarrow}$ watershed consolidation type ${\rightarrow}$ in-lake consolidation type ${\rightarrow}$ Management type and reservoir should be constructed to be over $5{\sim}6\;m$ in depth(ST/WS ratio) for preventing the eutrophication of agricultural reservoirs. We propose that water quality criteria for agricultural water is changed from less than 8 mg/L to less than 6 mg/L for safety value, $6{\sim}10\;mg/L$ for concern value, and more than 10 mg/L for countermeasure value in COD concentration, respectively.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.166-174
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• 2003

Microcystin produced by cyanobacteria in surface waters, such as eutrophic lake and river, is a kind of serious environmental problems due to its toxicity to human and wild animals. Microcystin is synthesized nonribosomally by the large modular multi-functional enzyme complex known as microcystin synthetase encoded by the mcy gene cluster. Amplification of mcy genes by PCR from cultures and environmental samples is a simple and efficient method to detect the toxigenic Microcystis. In order to evaluate primers designed to detect toxic microcystin-producing strains, 17 cyanobacterial strains and 20 environmental samples were examined by PCR with 7 pairs of primers. Some microcystin-producing cyanobacteria were not detected with FAA-RAA, TOX4F-TOX4R and FP-RP primers. The fragment of unexpected size was amplified with NSZW2-NSZW1 primers in Microcystis strains isolated from the lakes in Korea. TOX1P-TOX1F primers failed in amplification of toxin-producing strains. Only MSF-MSR and TOX2P- TOX2F primers amplified the fragments of mcy genes from 11 strains of microcystin-producing Microcystis. The water samples taken from 20 lakes in Korea were analyzed by PCR using each of the primers. In all the water samples, cyanobacteria capable of producing microcystin were detected by the PCR with TOX2P-TOX2F primers. These results indicate that TOX2P-TOX2F primers are better than the other primers for detection of microcystin-producing Microcystis strains in Korea. The nucleotide sequences of mcy gene in Microcystis aeruginosa NIER10010 suggest genetic diversity of Korean isolates.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.563-572
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• 2006

In order to propose optimum in-situ treatment for reducing phosphorous release from sediment of stationary lakes, a series of column tests were performed. The sediment used in experiment was very fine clay with a mean grain site $7.7{\phi}$ and high $C_{org}$ contents(2.4%). Phosphorous releases were evaluated in two ways : in lake water(with microbial effect) and in distilled water(without microbial effect). As in-situ capping material, sand and loess were used while Fe-Gypsum and $SiO_2$-Gypsum were used for in-situ chemical treatment. In case of lake water considering the effect of microorganism, phosphorous concentration rapidly decreased in the early stage of experiment but it was gradually increased after 10 days. Flux of phosphorous release for control was $3.0mg/m^2{\cdot}d$. Whereas, those for sand layer capping(5 cm) and loess layer capping(5 cm) were $2.5mg/m^2{\cdot}d\;and\;1.8mg/m^2{\cdot}d$, respectively because the latter two were not consolidated sufficiently. For Fe-gypsum and $SiO_2$-gypsum the fluxes were $1.4mg/m^2{\cdot}d$ which meant that reduction efficiency of phosphorous release was more than 40% higher than that of control. The case capping with complex layer was $1.0mg/m^2{\cdot}d$, which showed high reduction efficiency over 60%. The addition of gypsum($CaSO_4{\cdot}2H_2O$) into the sediment reduced release of Phosphorus from the sediments. Gypsum acted as a slow-releasing source of sulphate in sediment, which enhanced the activity of SRB(sulfate reducing bacteria) and improved the overall mineralization rate of organic matter.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.316-322
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• 2011

BACKGROUND: Pesticides concentration was monitored in 50 agricultural lakes, and ecological risk for aquatic organism was assessed using risk quotient (RQ) and probabilistic methods. METHODS AND RESULTS: Pesticides concentrations detected in 50 agricultural lakes during peak season (June and September) were in the range of $0.17{\sim}0.99{\mu}g/L$. The RQ for algae and the other species was estimated to be 0.25 and below 0.01, indicating medium risk and no risk. Oxadiazon predominantly contributed to RQ value of 99% for algae, fishes, and amphibians. In terms of hazardous concentration at 5% of species ($HC_5$), ecological risk quotients (ERQ) for oxadiazon ranged from 0.18~0.33, showing a medium risk level. Overall, the concentrations of pesticides were much lower than $HC_5$), value. Probability of combined ecological risk for pesticides ranged from 1.82% to 2.41%. CONCLUSION(s): Combined ecological risk probability did not exceed the acceptable level of 5%, indicating no ecological risk for selected aquatic species. This study suggests that regular ecological risk assessment (ERA) will be required to protect and manage an agricultural lake. Not only ERA at screening level by comparing exposure with toxic effects for aquatic species also advanced ERA technique considering species in indigenous to Korea, chronic toxicity, pulse dose, fate, and environmental factors should be required.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.209-220
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• 2023

Over the past few centuries, widespread changes to natural ecosystems caused by human activities have severely threatened biodiversity worldwide. Understanding changes in ecosystems is essential to identifying and managing threats to biodiversity. In line with this need, the IUCN Council formed the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (GET) in 2019, taking into account the functions and types of ecosystems. The IUCN provides maps of 10 ecosystem groups and 108 ecological functional groups (EFGs) on a global scale. According to the type classification of IUCN GET ecosystems, Korea's ecosystem is classified into 8 types of Realm (level 1), 18 types of Biome (level 2), and 41 types of Group (level 3). GETs provided by IUCN have low resolution and often do not match the actual land status because it was produced globally. This study aimed to increase the accuracy of Korean IUCN GET type classification by using land cover maps and producing maps that reflected the actual situation. To this end, we ① reviewed the Korean GET data system provided by IUCN GET and ② compared and analyzed it with the current situation in Korea. We evaluated the limitations and usability of the GET through the process and then ③ classified Korea's new Get type reflecting the current situation in Korea by using the national data as much as possible. This study classified Korean GETs into 25 types by using land cover maps and existing national data (Territorial realm: 9, Freshwater: 9, Marine-territorial: 5, Terrestrial-freshwater: 1, and Marine-freshwater-territorial: 1). Compared to the existing map, "F3.2 Constructed lacustrine wetlands", "F3.3 Rice paddies", "F3.4 Freshwater aquafarms", and "T7.3 Plantations" showed the largest area reduction in the modified Korean GET. The area of "T2.2 Temperate Forests" showed the largest area increase, and the "MFT1.3 Coastal saltmarshes and reedbeds" and "F2.2 Small permanent freshwater lakes" types also showed an increase in GET area after modification. Through this process, the existing map, in which the sum of all EFGs in the existing GET accounted for 8.33 times the national area, was modified so that the total sum becomes 1.22 times the national area using the land cover map. This study confirmed that the existing EFG, which had small differences by type and low accuracy, was improved and corrected. This study is significant in that it produced a GET map of Korea that met the GET standard using data reflecting the field conditions. 

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.34 no.1 s.93
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• pp.45-53
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• 2001

Transport of cyanobacterial toxins (microcystin-LR, -RR, -YR) were assessed from a eutrophic lake, Lake Suwa, through the outflowing river, the Tenryu River, and its irrigation channel branch. Temporal variation of phytoplankton species composition in the river coincided with those of the lake; Microcystis ichthyoblabe dominated from June to July, and M. viridis dominated from August to September. When cyanobacterial bloom occurred, microcystins were continuously detected at the concentration of $0.3{\sim}3.2\;{\mu}g/l$ even at 32 km downstream. The change of the content of three microcystin variants were related both with the total cell density of Microcystis and with the change of Microcystis species composition. When Microcystis ichthyoblabe dominated during July, only microcystin-RR (MC-RR) and -LR (MC-LR) were detected, while when Microcystis viridis dominated between August and October, microcystin-RR,-YR (MC -YR) and -LR were detected. Along 29 km flowing distance (flow time 11 hours) between site 2 and site 5 in the Tenryu River, cyanobacterial density and microcystin concentration were reduced by 73% and 72%, respectively, which is mostly contributed by the dilution effect of tributary waters (61% and 57%, respectively) . In the artificial irrigation channel microcystins and cyanobacterial cells were decreased less than in the natural river. The results indicate that cyanobacterial toxins can be transported far downstream without much removal and give hazards to water usage in downstream of eutrophic lakes with cyanobacterial blooms.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.36 no.4 s.105
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• pp.447-454
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• 2003

Aluminum coagulant was applied to two eutrophic lakes (Lake Sukchon, in Seoul, and a pond on the campus of Kangwon National University), to precipitate suspended particles and phosphate from the water column. Aluminum sulfate (alum) was used for seven treatments and polyaluminum chloride (PAC) was used for one treatment. The effect of treatment varied depending on the dose of alumium coagulant. Particles and phosphate were completely precipitated from the water column with a dose of 10.0 mgAl/l. Partial removal was observed at doses of 3.3 and 1.8 mgAl/l, but not at 0.45 mgAl/l. Therefore, coagulant should be applied at a dose over the threshold in order to remove particles effectively, which seems to be between 1.8 and 10.0 mgAl/l. The length of treatment effect was determined by new inputs of nutrients and particles from external sources. Renewal of pond water by stream water caused recovery of algal growth in Lake Sukchon, and rainfall runoff and ground water pumping caused a return of turbid water in the campus pond. During treatment there was no sign of decreasing pH, or harmful effects on fish or mussels. Aluminum coagulant may be an economically feasible alternative for water quality improvement when the external control of pollutant sources is difficult. However, repeated application is required when there is a renewal of lake water or new input of nutrients.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.37 no.1 s.106
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• pp.47-56
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• 2004

To understand the effect of nutrient deficiency on the plankton community in three stations with different water qualities in Pal'tang Reservoir, Korea, phytoplanktons(> 10 ${\mu}m$) were cultured in nutrient enrichment Allen's media (AM) and nutrient-deficient Allen's media. A distinct shift in the species composition and biomass of phytoplankton (as chlorophyll- a) showed in all treatments. In particular, it was very interesting that the new development of cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa occurred by the Fe-deficient AM. Except for Si, a community growth (as chlorophyll- a) was inhibited in all nutrient deficient treatments. Species diversity after nutrient deficiency was changed to below 2.0; slightly increased in N and P-deficiency, while decreased in Si and Fe, respectively. As suggested, dominance was entirely opposite to diversity. Therefore, the nutrient deficient effectively induced the succession of species and biomass, phytoplankton community, suggesting a possibility as a reliable tool to control the algal bloom in eutrophic lakes and reservoirs.

• Clean Technology
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.49-55
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• 2003

The generation of livestock wastewater in Korea amounts to $130,000m^3/day$, 0.43% of the total waste water volume, but which corresponds to 8.6% of total BOD loading. Furthermore this wastewater contains a large amount of nitrogen and phosphorus that are major causes of eutrophication in rivers and lakes. The average volume of livestock wastewater in a Korea's single farm is only $2.5m^3/day$, which necessitates development of a simple and economical process for the removal of nitrogen and phosphorus. Introduction of filtration method removes more than 90% of suspended solids. Subsequent application of reverse osmosis removes more then 95% of total nitrogen and phosphorus in the wastewater. The effluent of this treatment will yield less than 200 mg/L of total nitrogen and 1 mg/L of total phosphorous, which are lower than 260 mg/L of total N and 50 mg/L of total P, the regulation values of Ministry of Environment, Korea. Treating $2m^3/day$ of livestock wastewater was found to be feasible with the application of filtration and reverse osmosis and the electricity requirement was estimated to be about 30 Kwh/month.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.331-339
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• 2006

Inhabitant patterns of the legally protected species and the characteristics of fish fauna in the Pyeongchang River, Korea, were studied from April to July 2004 by selecting 6 sites. The number of fish samples in this period were 2,448 in 35 species of 9 families. A total of nineteen endemic species (54.29%) were presented and those were Hemibarbus mylodon and Acheilognathus signifer. The highest frequency was shown in Zacco korean us (34.84%) and Pungtungia herzi (10.25%) and Coreoleuciscus splendidus (6.86%) were the next. In addition, The highest biomass was found in Z. koreanus (5,580.2g) and Coreoperca. herzi (1.241.2g) and C. splendidus (1,207.0g) were the next. When comparing the distribution of the legally protected species in within the Han River system, the highesting distributions were determined in the Pyeongchang and Dong River (6 species). The ratio of individuals in the Pyeongchang River was shown to be higher (10.62%) than that of other lakes and streams. In conclusion, more precise protection and protective plans were needed in order to maintain the lake ecology in good status because the Pyeongchang River is relatively well protected from the anthropogenic disturbance in the legally protected species including the endemic species.