• Journal of Climate Change Research
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.339-346
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• 2017

The Korea Adaptation Center for Climate Change (KACCC) located in Korea Environment Institute has serviced a climate change vulnerability assessment support tool (VESTAP) since 2014 in order to help local governments to establish their own adaptation plans. Owing to its easy usage, the VESTAP has been utilized by not only local governments but also academia for examination of climate change vulnerability in various fields. However, the KACCC has not suggested a standard usage how to compose indices for climate exposure, sensitivity, and adaptation capacity which are main components of vulnerability although the KACCC manages operation and application of the VESTAP. Many users had no choice but to compose indices based on their own interpretation on the components of vulnerability. This technical note suggests the standard usage of VESTAP by reevaluating some vulnerability assessments previously developed. This may help users to correctly compose indices for climate change vulnerability assessment, and may minimize possibility of inter-user inconsistency in definition of vulnerability assessments.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Geographic Information Studies
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.1-11
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• 2016

Climate change is the issue that attracts the most attention in the field of environment, as well as the most challenging task faced by the human race. There are various ways to resolve this issue. South Korea has established the primary and secondary national climate change adaptation plans at the national level, and is making it compulsory for each local government (lower and municipal-level) to establish climate change adaptation plans. Climate change vulnerability assessment plays an essential role in establishing climate change adaptation action plans. However, vulnerability assessment has a difficulty performing individual assessments since the results are produced through complex calculations of multiple impact factors. Accordingly, this study developed a web-based supporting tool(VESTAP) for climate change vulnerability assesment that can be used by lower and municipal-level local governments. The VESTAP consists of impact DB and vulnerability assessment and display tool. The index DB includes total 455 impacts of future climate data simulated with RCP (Representative Concentration Pathways) 4.5 and 8.5, atmospheric environment data, other humanities and social statistics, and metadata. The display tool has maximized convenience by providing various analytical functions such as spatial distribution, bias and schematization of each vulnerability assessment result. A pilot test of health vulnerability assessment by particulate matters in Sejong Metropolitan Autonomous City was performed using the VESTAP, and Bukang-myeon showed the highest vulnerability. By using the developed tool, each local government is expected to be able to establish climate change adaptation action plans more easily and conveniently based on scientific evidence.

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.57-62
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• 2016

This study evaluated the risk of forest fires due to climate change in Jeju using the VESTAP. The study primarily aimed at assessing the risks posed to Jeju city and Seogwipo city, and uses actual and projected date from the period of 2000's to 2040's based on RCP 8.5 scenario. Forest fire vulnerability throughout Jeju-do was determined through the standardization of vulnerability index. The highest vulnerability was determined for the towns of Chuja-myeon, Udo-myeon, two downtown areas in Jeju city, Daejeong-eup, and five downtown areas in Seogwipo city, respectively.

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.64-70
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• 2016

This study assessed the flood vulnerability of Jeju-do depending on climate change using VESTAP. The results showed that the flood vulnerability of Jeju-do in the future (2020s, 2030s and 2040s) will increase continuously compared to the present time (2010s). In particular, the flood vulnerability of Jeju-si is expected to be higher than Seogwipo-si prior to 2030s. Conversely, the flood vulnerability of Seogwipo-si is expected to be higher than Jeju-si after 2030. These analysis results confirmed the characteristics of flood vulnerability between Seogwipo-si and Jeju-si and the growth of flood vulnerability entirely within Jeju-do.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.47-53
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• 2019

This study applies the concept of climate change vulnerability assessment in order to suggest climate change adaptation effects in a quantitative manner, given that previous studies have hitherto rely on qualitative assessment, as climate change adaptive policies are currently being implemented by local governments of Korea. The vulnerability assessment tool used in this study is VESTAP ("Vulnerability assESsment Tool to build a climate change Adaptation Plan"), which was developed by the Korea Adaptation Center for Climate Change (KACCC), and applied to gauge the vulnerability of pine trees to diseases and pests within Chungcheongnam-do. The climate change adaptation project for vulnerability improvement was assessed only in terms of forest disaster prevention and change in regional climate change vulnerabilities within 16 regions of Chungcheongnam-do as the result of 2016 Climate Change Adaptation Project (Forest Disaster Prevention Project). As a result, it was observed that climate change adaptive capacity has improved according to change in the area of forestland with disaster prevention, and the vulnerability indicator decreased, confirming the impact of the climate change adaptation (forest disaster prevention) project. Also, analysis of regional climate change adaptation project scales and change in vulnerabilities allowed us to determine the regional propriety of climate change adaptation (forest disaster prevention) projects launched in 2016.

• Journal of Climate Change Research
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.275-285
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• 2017

Chungnam region has established and executed the 2nd Climate Change Adaptation Initiative Execution Plan (2017~2021) based on the Framework Act on Low Carbon, Green Growth. The Execution Plan is established based on the results of climate change vulnerability assessment using the CCGIS, LCCGIS, and VESTAP analysis tools. However, the previously developed climate change vulnerability assessment tools (CCGIS, LCCGIS, VESTAP) cannot reflect the local records and the items and indices of new assessment. Therefore, this study developed a prototype of climate change vulnerability assessment analysis tool that, unlike the previous analysis tools, designs the items and indices considering the local characteristics and allows analysis of grid units. The prototype was used to simulate the vulnerability to forest fires of eight cities and seven towns in Chungcheongnam-do Province in the 2010s, 2020s, and 2050s based on the RCP (Representative Concentration Pathways) 8.5 Scenario provided by the Korea Meteorological Administration. Based on the analysis, Chungcheongnam-do Province's vulnerability to forest fires in the 2010s was highest in Seocheon-gun (0.201), followed by Gyeryong-si (0.173) and Buyeo-gun (0.173) and the future prospects in the 2050s was highest in Seocheon-gun (0.179), followed by Gyeryong-si (0.169) and Buyeo-gun (0.154). The area with highest vulnerability to forest fires in Chungcheongnam-do Province was Biin-myeon, Seocheon-gun and the area may become most vulnerable was Pangyo-myeon, Seocheon-gun. The prototype and the results of analysis may be used to establish the directions and strategies in regards to the vulnerability to wild fires to secure each local government's 2nd execution plan and attainability.