• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.1-13
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• 2003

Conservation of wetlands are important because wetlands are hatcheries for fishes and habitat for migratory birds and mammals. Wetlands also function as a filter for polluted water and material and transition zone for harboring numerous species of plants and animals. This paper reviewed the importance of wetland conservation and policy on management of wetlands in Korea. Wetland Conservation Act(1999) and Maritime Management Act(1999) are two legislation for conservation of wetlands. Wetland Conservation Act is issued by both Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries. The definition of wetlands are so diverse, but this paper categorized wetlands as both natural and man-made lakes, mud flat areas and inland wetlands. Management application was considered for each wetland categories.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.477-484
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• 2013

In 1999, Wetlands Conservation Act was enacted for the domestic implementation of the Ramsar Convention in Korea. According to the Act, wetlands have been managed by the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries(MOF). In the field of coastal wetland of which MOF is in charge, starting with the designation of Muan coastal wetlands as protected area in 2001, there are 12 wetland conservation areas up to $218.96km^2$. Even though there has been rapid growth of protected areas, it is time to give attention to the effective implementation of wetland conservation policies. This study aims to analyze institutional and operational problems related to wetland management and give some recommendations for the improvement of the wetland conservation policy and legal framework.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.519-527
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• 2013

The Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Korea set up 'the $2^{nd}$ Fundamental Plan for Wetlands Conservation' to facilitate systematic surveys and management of various national wetlands and to promote sustainable conservation and use of those wetlands. The mid-term fundamental plan was established in accordance with the Article 5 of the Wetland Conservation Act, which spans 5 years from 2013 to 2017 and covers national wetlands including inland wetlands and coastal wetlands stated in the Act. The fundamental plan aims to promote the wise use of wetlands through establishing policies for sustainable conservation based on the assessment of implementation of the $1^{st}$ Fundamental Plan, setting up a scientific framework for establishment and implementation of national wetland policies by improving wetland survey systems and enhancing basis wetland data, improving the ecological health of wetlands and securing biodiversity conservation of wetlands by strengthening conservation and management system of national wetlands, and through raising public awareness and diversify education and promotion tools. The main objectives of the $2^{nd}$ Fundamental Plan is to revise the entire Wetland Conservation Act, to create a new monitoring system of national inland wetlands, to upgrade the national wetlands inventory, to reflect the 'Ecological Map' for promoting precautionary management of wetlands, to improve the 'Wetland Restoration and Management' system to build wetlands resilience, and to systematize the wise use of wetlands that benefits local people. As the Ministry of Environment plans to establish its other master plan for wetland conservation based on the $2^{nd}$ Fundamental Plan, this document introduces the $2^{nd}$ Fundamental Plan to stakeholder and wetland professions.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.481-488
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• 2011

Various development activities have lead to the destruction of the ecosystem such as natural wetlands. In order to protect these natural wetlands, the Ministry of Environment (MOE) in Korea enacted the Wetland Conservation Act in 1999 and designated protected areas for wetland conservation. The MOE adapted the use of Best Management Practices (BMP) such as retention ponds and constructed wetlands to treat the polluted water before entering the water system. One of these projects was a free-water surface flow (FWS) constructed wetland built as a secondary treatment unit for piggery wastewater effluent coming from a livestock wastewater treatment facility. Water quality monitoring for the constructed wetland was conducted during rainfall events. The results showed that the average removal efficiencies of TSS, BOD, TN, TP were 86, 60, 45, 70%, respectively. It was observed that the removal efficiency of particulate matter and phosphorus was high compared to nitrogen. Therefore, a longer hydraulic retention time was needed in order to improve the treatment efficiency of nitrogen. The results of this study can contribute to the wetland design, operation and maintenance of constructed wetlands.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.244-250
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• 2022

The changes in COD, TOC, T-P, and T-N concentrations were investigated for 2 years in the constructed wetland of Sookcheon, which was installed to improve the water quality of Daecheong reservoir in South Korea. In order to evaluate the pollution level of sediments in the wetland, settling velocity of particulate material (4 times) and sedimet material contents (6 times) were measured. COD and TOC concentrations increased slightly as they passed through wetlands, and T-N and T-P concentration tended to decrease. The material content (COD, T-P, T-N) of aquatic plants was higher in floating-leaved and free-floating macrophytes than emergent macrophytes. As a result of measuring the sedimentation rate of suspended materials, most of the suspended materials introduced into constructed wetlands were sedimented at a rapid rate in the first sedimentation site. In addition, sediment pollution of T-P and T-N in constructed wetland was in severe pollution. The sediments containing a large amount of T-P and T-N were eluted by physical and chemical environmental changes, which is likely to act as internal pollution sources in wetlands.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.164-170
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• 2016

Since most of the existing wastewater treatment options lack the ability to treat micro-contaminants, the increased use of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) and release as human waste have become a serious concern in recent years. Constructed wetlands (CWs) are a low-cost technology for wastewater treatment, however, its performance in term of PPCPs removal has not yet been fully investigated. This study aimed to characterize the removal factors and efficiency of acetaminophen (ACT) removal by CWs. The results revealed the decreased concentrations of ACT with increasing hydraulic retention times (HRT) of 0, 3, 5 days. The contribution of removal factors was found to be varied with initial ACT concentration. At the low ACT concentration (i.e. 1 ppb), plant uptake was the dominant, followed by microbial and photolytic removal. In contrast, at the high ACT concentration (i.e. 100 ppb), microbial and photolytic removal were found as dominant factors. On the other hand, hydrogen peroxide ($H_2O_2$) concentration was found at higher level in the plant shoot than in the root probably due to occurrence of the Fenton reaction resulting in PPCPs removal.

• Ecology and Resilient Infrastructure
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.120-132
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• 2021

The ecosystem and landscape conservation areas of Seoul were designated according to the Natural Environment Conservation Act and the Natural Environment Conservation Ordinance. With the adoption of the "Rapid Assessment of Wetland Ecosystem Service (RAWES)" approach and the "wetland ecosystem service" for the Ramsar Wetland City Accreditation at the 13th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands in 2018, the need for data evaluating wetland ecosystem services has become a necessity. Therefore, in this study, we selected five wetlands from the ecosystem and landscape conservation areas in Seoul, having high ecological conservation values, and evaluated their carbon sequestration and economic value assessment using the InVEST model, which is an ecosystem service evaluation technique. The evaluation results for carbon storage in each wetland are as follows: Tancheon Wetland: 3,674.62 Mg; Bamseom Island in the Hangang River: 1,511.57 Mg; Godeok-dong Wetland: 5,007.21 Mg; Amsa-dong Wetland: 7,108.47 Mg; and Yeouido Wetland: 290.27 Mg. Particularly, the Tancheon Wetland showed the lowest carbon sequestration of 1,130.37 Mg, as compared to the results acquired in 2013, of 4,804.99 Mg. When the average effective carbon rate of $16.06 (US) was applied to the decreased carbon sequestration value, a loss of $15,910.58(US) was calculated. Furthermore, if the average social cost of carbon ($204 (US)) is considered, which includes the impact of climate change on productivity and ecosystems, the total loss is equivalent to $202,101.97 (US). This study aims to examine the natural resource value of urban wetlands by evaluating selected major wetlands in Seoul. This study can be utilized as basic data to plan for the protection and management of the ecosystem and landscape conservation areas. Additionally, because wetland value assessment is considered essential, the results of this study can be used in future research to provide measures for evaluating ecosystem services in the Ramsar Wetland City Certification System. Moreover, this study can be utilized for selecting important wetlands as Ramsar sites, and to raise awareness about the significance of conserving urban wetlands, and for expanding international exchange among the Ramsar Wetland sites.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.209-223
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• 2007

Twenty-four wetlands located in Higashi-Hiroshima City in West Japan were selected for this study in order to investigate both the relationship between aquatic plant composition and environmental conditions; and the relationship between changing land use patterns in the catchments and the concentration of different forms of nitrogen in the wetlands. The dominant and subdominant species which comprised the principal vegetation were determined based on a vegetation census conducted in each wetland during the growing season from June to August, 2006. The seasonal variations of water quality factors (pH, electrical conductivity, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, total dissolved solid, and temperature) and different forms of nitrogen such as nitrite, nitrate, ammonium, total nitrogen, dissolved organic nitrogen and dissolved inorganic nitrogen concentrations were analyzed as important indicators of water quality for the surface water of the wetlands. The surveyed wetlands were classified into three types (non-disturbed wetlands, moderately-disturbed wetlands and highly-disturbed wetlands), based on the degree of human disturbance to their catchment areas. An analysis of variance indicated that there was a significant difference among the wetland groups in the annual mean values of electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, total nitrogen, nitrite, dissolved inorganic nitrogen and dissolved organic nitrogen. Classification of the wetlands into three groups has revealed a pattern of changes in the composition of plant species in the wetlands and a pattern of changes in nitrogen concentrations. A majority of the non-disturbed wetlands were characterized by Brasenia schrebi and Trapa bispinosa as dominant; with Potamogeton fryeri and Iris pesudacorus as sub-dominant species. For most of the moderately-disturbed wetlands, Brasenia schrebi were shown to be a dominant species; Elocheriss kuriguwai and Phragmites australis were observed as sub-dominant species. For a majority of the highly-disturbed wetlands, Typha latifolia and T. angustifolia were observed as dominant species, and Nymphea tetragona as the sub-dominant species in the study area. An analysis of land use and water quality factors indicated that forest area played a considerable role in reducing the concentration of nutrients, and can act as a sink for surface/subsurface nutrient inputs flowing into wetland water, anchor the soil, and lower erosion rates into wetlands.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.211-223
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• 2015

Korean society has been recently promoting the restoration of coastal wetlands. These efforts might become the basis of a policy framework that compensates for the limitations of a regulation-oriented policy such as the designation of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). The shift in government policy could contribute to strengthening the socioeconomic infrastructure of coastal development through the accumulation of ecological capital. Although our scientific efforts and social demands in regard to the ecological restoration of the coastal wetlands have increased during the past years, the bases for restoration in Korea requires that scientific, technological, financial, social and legal aspects be enhanced. The present study re-examined the concept and attitudes behind coastal wetland restoration in the light of changing circumstances in Korea. Herein, we first defined coastal wetland restoration as "An act of recovering the functions of the ecosystem of coastal wetlands to a state that resembles conditions prior to being damaged." Next, this study discussed the limitations and future directions of such restoration efforts based on the descriptive analyses of recent restoration practices from social, economic, and technological aspects. Finally, we suggest future policy directions regarding coastal wetland restoration on the basis of a PFST (Policy, Financial, Social, and Technological) analysis; 1) re-arranging legal mechanisms, 2) setting multi-dimensional restoration goals, 3) establishing a multi-discipline- and convergence based R&D system, 4) linking spatial management and local development to the restoration, 5) building restoration governance at the local level, 6) implementing an ecosystem service payment system, and 7) applying test-bed projects in accordance with proper directions.

• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2022.05a
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• pp.462-462
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• 2022

Wetlands are one of the most vital natural habitats on the planet. India is incredibly blessed to have a number of multifunctional wetland ecosystems. Wetlands, in addition to their functional importance, can act as sources or sinks for greenhouse gases (GHGs) depending on their intrinsic factors. Carbon (CO2) and Methane (CH4) are the major greenhouse gases (GHG's) emitted in wetlands. It is demonstrated that, despite having 4.6 percent of its area covered by natural or man-made wetlands, being home to a large number of wetlands, and being the world's second largest cultivator of paddy, India's wetlands, including paddy fields that are intermittently flooded as typical wetlands, have been very poorly studied in terms of GHG emissions. The purpose of this paper is to examine the status of Indian wetlands and wetlands in terms of CH4 and CO2 emissions. The present study also reviews various literature to provide the equations, parameters that are required for estimating carbon and methane and some of the best strategies for conserving carbon in wetlands. The findings suggest that both non-manipulative and manipulative measures can be used to improve Carbon Sequestration (CS). Non-manipulative measures aim to improve CS by increasing the spatial extent of wetlands, whereas manipulative measures aim to change the characteristics of specific wetland components that influence CS. Uncertainty in carbon dynamics projections under changing environmental conditions is caused by a number of Knowledge gaps: i) There is a lack of knowledge on how organic matter mineralizes and partitions into carbon dioxide, methane, and dissolved organic carbon, ii) With the notable exception of methane dynamics, models that represent the dynamic interaction of processes and their controls have yet to be established. As a result, more research is needed to fully understand the importance of wetlands in terms of GHG emissions and carbon sequestration in India.