• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
• /
• v.28 no.1
• /
• pp.50-66
• /
• 1975

Since it is an undeniable fact that the so-called illegal field-burning cultivation is directly implicated in the causes of forest devastation, land erosion, and drought and flood, thus, barring the nation from a well-balanced economic growth, the policy to exterminate its practices must have the topmost priority. Eighty percent of Gangweon-do is mountain forests and naturally of all others this province has the largest area of illegally burned hill-side farminglands, stubbornly retarding the provincial development policy as well as directly causing tremendous forest damages. In 1965 a 7-year plan mapped out to rehabilitate these gypsy type field burning farmers only to be suspended in 1968 to give way to the mandatory project of clearing the isolated farmsteads set in deep mountain to circumvent the guerilla forces signaled by the so-called Samcheok-Uljin area infiltration. In the meantime, new hordes of roving farmers burned the forests, working a renewed havoc. To cope with this situation, the provincial government, taking the year 1973 as a planning year, launched another three year project (1974-76) and has been enforcing the rehabilitation project mobilizing the whole administrative power. Whether or not this project will succeed solely depends upon whether the forcedly rehabilitated roving farmers can really establish self-supporting homesteads. Among the various difficulties facing the newly established homesteaders are: (1) First of all, the homesteaders must be given money-earning jobs. (2) Financial supports or subsidies must be provided them with which to establish self-supporting homesteads. (3) Private enterprises as well as public organizations must offer them jobs with priority. (4) The rehabilitated rovers themselves must establish self-supporting homesteads before expecting the external assistance. (5) The rehabilitated rovers themselves must have the spirit of self-help, welcoming all levels and all kinds of jobs. (6) The rural revitalization movement must expand the self-help reconstruction projects to give them the opportunity to work. (7) All citizen in the province must receive and protect them with brethren love. (8) The evacuated burned-forests must be reforestrated with the principle of "best trees to the best lands". (9) The seedlings of species that the forest owners select must anyhow be secured and supplied (10) The organization and function of the village forestry association must be strengthened to take effective care of the reforestated burned-forests.