• Environmental and Resource Economics Review
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.199-228
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• 2016

This study investigates the effects of economic factors and forest environments on rural residential area development in seven north central states of the U.S. by focusing on the relative importance of not only economic factors but also forest environments by forest type as core drivers of residential development. An empirical model of locations and magnitudes of population changes since 1950 in the north central region is first constructed, and then a panel model with fixed effects for counties is used to explain population growth by age group over time at the county level. Then a set of three equations is estimated for three major age groups, and a cross-sectional model is estimated for the last time period that regresses county-level environmental amenity variables on fixed effects coefficients for counties. Finally, an equation explaining changes in rural housing density is estimated. The results imply that immigrant age is a key factor influencing the choice of the place of residence and that the effects of environmental amenity factors on population growth and subsequent housing development in a county vary according to the age group.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.198-221
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• 2021

After large-scale reforestation in the 1960s and 1970s, forests in Korea have gradually been aging. Net ecosystem CO₂ exchange of old-growth forests is theoretically near zero; however, it can be a CO₂ sink or source depending on the intervention of disturbance or management. In this study, we report the CO₂ budget dynamics of the Gwangneung deciduous old-growth forest (GDK) in Korea and examined the following two questions: (1) is the preserved GDK indeed CO₂ neutral as theoretically known? and (2) can we explain the dynamics of CO₂ budget by the common mechanisms reported in the literature? To answer, we analyzed the 15-year long CO₂ flux data measured by eddy covariance technique along with other biometeorological data at the KoFlux GDK site from 2006 to 2020. The results showed that (1) GDK switched back-and-forth between sink and source of CO₂ but averaged to be a week CO₂ source (and turning to a moderate CO₂ source for the recent five years) and (2) the interannual variability of solar radiation, growing season length, and leaf area index showed a positive correlation with that of gross primary production (GPP) (R²=0.32~0.45); whereas the interannual variability of both air and surface temperature was not significantly correlated with that of ecosystem respiration (RE). Furthermore, the machine learning-based model trained using the dataset of early monitoring period (first 10 years) failed to reproduce the observed interannual variations of GPP and RE for the recent five years. Biomass data analysis suggests that carbon emissions from coarse woody debris may have contributed partly to the conversion to a moderate CO₂ source. To properly understand and interpret the long-term CO₂ budget dynamics of GDK, new framework of analysis and modeling based on complex systems science is needed. Also, it is important to maintain the flux monitoring and data quality along with the monitoring of coarse woody debris and disturbances.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.112 no.1
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• pp.71-82
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• 2023

Forest biomass is used as a representative indicator of forest size, maturity, and productivity. Therefore, quantitative evaluation is important for management and harvest as well as the evaluation of ecosystem functions and services including CO₂ absorption. The allometric equation is a widely used method for estimating the value of each component through the relative growth rate of plants. Recently, studies indicated that the relative growth of trees is changing because of the increased CO₂ concentration in the atmosphere and the resulting climate change, raising the need to review the previously developed relative growth models and coefficients. In this study, the height-diameter at breast height (DBH) relationships of four major tree species in Korea [(Pinus densiflora (PD), Larix kaempferi (LK), Quercus variabilis (QV), and Quercus mongolica (QM)] were analyzed using the 5th-7th National Forest Inventory (NFI) data. Furthermore, these results were compared with the present yield table from the National Institute for Forest Science. This analysis revealed that the expected height for the same DBH increased as the NFI progressed. For example, in model analysis, the expected heights for PD, LK, QV, and QM for DBH of 25 cm were 12.48, 19.17, 14.47, and 13.19 m, respectively, in the 5th NFI data. In the 7th NFI data, these values were estimated as 13.61 (+9.1%), 21.58 (+12.7%), 15.76 (+8.9%), and 13.93 m (+5.6%), respectively. These results indicate that the major tree species in South Korean forests currently are more vigorous in height growth than in diameter growth when compared to the height-DBH development trends by tree species identified through past survey data.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.127-135
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• 2008

The mission of the Forest Inventory and Analyis (FIA) program of the Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, is to conduct the national forest inventory of the United States of America for purposes of estimating the area of forest land; the volume, growth, and removal of forest resources; and the health of the forest. Users of FIA data, estimates, and related products include land managers, policy and decision-makers, forest industry, environmental organizations, and university researchers. To accomplish its mission, the FIA program has established a sampling design with an intensity of approximately one permanent plot per 2,400 ha across the entire country. Depending on the region of the country, each plot is remeasured at intervals of five or 10 years. The program releases data annually and reports estimates at the county level for each state every five years. Due to budgetary constraints and natural variability among plot observations, sufficient numbers of plots cannot be measured to satisfy precision guidelines for the estimates of many variables unless the estimation process is enhanced using ancillary data. Classified satellite imagery has been demonstrated to be a source of ancillary data that can be used with stratified estimation techniques to increase the precision of estimates with little corresponding increase in costs. A crucial factor restricting the utility of FIA data is that the exact locations of inventory plots cannot be released to the public. Thus, users are generally not able to obtain estimates for small areas or for their own areas of interest if exact plot locations are required. To compensate, satellite imagery, inventory plot data, and the k-Nearest Neighbors technique are being used to construct Internet-based maps of forest attributes from which estimates for arbitrary user-defined areas of interest may be obtained.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.94 no.6
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• pp.488-495
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• 2005

This study was conducted to understand the influences of forest structure on throughfall, stemflow and interception loss. The study plots included the natural old-growth deciduous, Pinus koraiensis and Abies holophylla forests in Gwangneung and the rehabilitated young mixed forest in Yangju, Gyeonggido. The Pinus koraiensis and Abies hotophylla had been planted in 1976. The rehabilitated young mixed forest had been established to control erosion in 1974. Total and net rainfall were monitored from March, 2003 to October, 2004. Tipping bucket rain gauge recorded total rainfall. Throughfall and stemflow were measured by custom-made tipping bucket and CR10X data logger at each $10m{\times}10m$ plots at intervals of 30 minutes. Interception loss in the Pinus koraiensis plot were most as 37.2% of total rainfall and least as 22.6% in the rehabilitated young mixed forest. Stemflow in the rehabilitated young mixed forest was 10.7% of total rainfall and stemflow in the Pinus koraiensis plot was 2.4%. The average throughfall ratio ranged from 66% to 77% depending on the canopy coverage. The relationship of stemflow and total rainfall represented in a linear regression equation though the variation of data was large. The ratio of stemflow-conversion was 2% of total rainfall in the Pinus koraiensis plot and 12% in the rehabilitated young mixed forest, respectively. The stem storage of the natural old-growth deciduous was the largest of 0.21 mm whereas that of the Pinus koraiensis plot was the least of 0.003 mm. A deciduous forest produced stemflow more than a coniferous forest due to a smooth bark and steeply angled branches. Interception loss of all study plots increased linearly as total rainfall increased. The distribution of interception loss data related in total rainfall became wider in a deciduous forest than a coniferous. It resulted from seasonality of leaf area index in a deciduous forest. As considered above results, it was confirmed that there were great differences of throughfall, stemflow and interception loss depending on forest stand structures. The simulation model for predicting interception loss must have parameters such as forest stand characteristics and LAI in order to describe the influence of forest structure on interception loss.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.193-206
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• 2024

This study aimed to quantify changes in forest cover and carbon storage of Korean Peninsular during the last two decades by integrating field measurement, satellite remote sensing, and modeling approaches. Our analysis based on 30-m Landsat data revealed that the forested area in Korean Peninsular had diminished significantly by 478,334 ha during the period of 2000-2019, with South Korea and North Korea contributing 51.3% (245,725 ha) and 48.6% (232,610 ha) of the total change, respectively. This comparable pattern of forest loss in both South Korea and North Korea was likely due to reduced forest deforestation and degradation in North Korea and active forest management activity in South Korea. Time series of above ground biomass (AGB) in the Korean Peninsula showed that South and North Korean forests increased their total AGB by 146.4Tg C (AGB at 2020=357.9Tg C) and 140.3Tg C (AGB at 2020=417.4Tg C), respectively, during the last two decades. This could be translated into net AGB increases in South and North Korean forests from 34.8 and 29.4 Mg C ha^-1 C to 58.9(+24.1) and 44.2(+14.8) Mg C ha^-1, respectively. It indicates that South Korean forests are more productive during the study period. Thus, they have sequestered more carbon. Our approaches and results can provide useful information for quantifying national scale forest cover and carbon dynamics. Our results can be utilized for supporting forest restoration planning in North Korea

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.135-141
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• 2011

The present study was carried out from September 2007 to February 2008 in Umfakarin natural forest reserve, South Kordofan, Sudan. The objective was to analyze the effect of different management strategies on yield of gum talha from Acacia seyal. A total of 493 single target trees were selected, based on their diameters, and assigned to tapping treatments in three different stand densities (making a total of nine treatments per stand density). The treatments are as follows: tapping date with three levels (first of October, 15 October and first of November) and two levels of local tapping tools (sonki, and makmak). Untapped trees were used as control. The first picking of gum was started fifteen days after tapping while the subsequent pickings were done in intervals of fifteen days. Yield per tree throughout the season was obtained by summing up the gum yield from all pickings. Yield throughout the season (from first to the last picking) were analyzed. General linear model (GLM) was used to test the effect of different tapping treatments on the yield of gum talha. Post hoc test after analysis of variance (ANOVA) based on Scheffe test was performed to examine the differences in gum yield as a result of different management strategies. The results showed that tapping has a significant influence on gum yield. Analysis of pick-to-pick yield indicated that only three treatments in dense stand density showed a decreasing pattern while the rest of treatments either have constant or unclear patterns. The results of the present study were based on a single season data and that may underscore the real effect of Acacia seyal stands' management strategies on gum talha yield. Conducting gum yield experiments in permanent trial plots are highly recommended in order to analyze gum yield of seasonal time series.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.27-43
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• 2019

This study applied the LANDIS-II model to the forest vegetation of the study area in Yeongdong-gun, Korea to identify climate effects on ecosystems of forest vegetation. The main purpose of the study is to examine the long-term changes in forest aboveground biomass(AGB) under three different climate change scenarios; The baseline climate scenario is to maintain the current climate condition; the RCP 4.5 scenario is a stabilization scenario to employ of technologies and strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions; the RCP 8.5 scenario is increasing greenhouse gas emissions over time representative with 936ppm of $CO_2$ concentration by 2100. The vegetation survey and tree-ring analysis were conducted to work out the initial vegetation maps and data for operation of the LANDIS model. Six types of forest vegetation communities were found including Quercus mongolica - Pinus densiflora community, Quercus mongolica community, Pinus densiflora community, Quercus variabilis-Quercus acutissima community, Larix leptolepis afforestation and Pinus koraiensis afforestation. As for changes in total AGB under three climate change scenarios, it was found that RCP 4.5 scenario featured the highest rate of increase in AGB whereas RCP 8.5 scenario yielded the lowest rate of increase. These results suggest that moderately elevated temperatures and $CO_2$ concentrations helped the biomass flourish as photosynthesis and water use efficiency increased, but huge increase in temperature ($above+4.0^{\circ}C$) has resulted in the increased respiration with increasing temperature. Consequently, Species productivity(Biomass) of trees decrease as the temperature is elevated drastically. It has been confirmed that the dominant species in all scenarios was Quercus mongolica. Like the trends shown in the changes of total AGB, it revealed the biggest increase in the AGB of Quercus mongolica under the RCP 4.5 scenario. AGB of Quercus mongolica and Quercus variabilis decreased in the RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 scenarios after 2050 but have much higher growth rates of the AGB starting from 2050 under the baseline scenario. Under all scenarios, the AGB of coniferous species was eventually perished in 2100. In particular they were extinguished in early stages of the RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 scenarios. This is because of natural selection of communities by successions and the failure to adapt to climate change. The results of the study could be expected to be effectively utilized to predict changes of the forest ecosystems due to climate change and to be used as basic data for establishing strategies for adaptation climate changes and the management plans for forest vegetation restoration in ecological restoration fields.

• Proceedings of the KSRS Conference
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• 2003.11a
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• pp.1127-1127
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• 2003

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.103 no.2
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• pp.264-269
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• 2014

The aim of this study was to determine the current distribution area of Robinia pseudoacacia habitat and to estimate its stand yield as well as its carbon stocks. In order to do so, the area of R. pseudoacacia distribution is obtained based on the large-scaled forest type map (1:5,000). Also, Weibull diameter distribution model is used to predict the yield of R. pseudoacacia stands. In addition, carbon emission factor is applied to calculate carbon stocks and removals. To obtain the stand yield of R. pseudoacacia, we developed estimation equation considering growth factors of the stand, e.g. mean diameter, the basal area, maximum and minimun diameter and etc. and tested it to ensure accuracy. Consequently, estimation equation derived from all growth factors have shown significance that could also be used for analysis. Site index was also established to determine the productivity of the forestland that later turned out to be ranging from 16 to 22. Based on these results, stand yield tables were drawn up. R. pseudoacacia is widely distributed in inland areas of Gyeongsang, Chungcheong and Gyeonggi provinces which covers total area of 26,770 ha. And when it is converted into carbon stocks, it amounts to 2,517,598tC with annual carbon uptake of 3.76tC/ha which is comparable to Querqus species that is known to storer large amounts of carbon. Therefore, R. pseudoacacia is also expected to serve as a viable carbon pool that would contribute to the mitigation of climate change. Furthermore, stand yield tables, an outcome of this survey would assist not only in proper management but also in sustainable management policy of R. pseudoacacia.