• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.45-51
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• 2017

Nepal is a landlocked mountainous country in South Asia, located between China to the north and India to the south, east, and west. As such, wastewater management has become one of the most significant problems in urban area of Nepal. In Nepal, the centralized wastewater treatment systems were dysfunctional due to high cost of operation, discontinuous power supply, lack of proper maintenance and proper technical workforce to address the issues. As such, constructed wetlands (CW) were applied to treat various secondary wastewater as alternative to wastewater treatment facilities. Generally, efficiency and sustainability of CW technology depends on proper operation and maintenance and active community involvement. This study summarizes information about 26 CW in Nepal. Specifically, factors including data banking, removal efficiency, quality of discharged water, compliance to water quality standard of Nepal and operation and maintenance were investigated. Considering removal efficiency per pollutant, Ka-1 achieved the greatest reduction for most pollutant followed by B-1, L-3, Ka-5 and K-1. Nepal has practiced CW technology for more than 2 decades but currently, development of technology was interrupted by the inefficient performance of existing facilities. Public awareness about the technology, natural disaster, unavailability of specified substrate materials, lack of fund for further research and experiments has hindered the expansion of technology. In spite of these concerns, CW was still proven as an alternative solution to the present wastewater problems in urban areas of Nepal.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.268-274
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• 2011

BACKGROUND: A large scale of sediment load delivered from watershed causes substantial waterway damages and water quality degradation. Controlling sediment loading requires the knowledge of the soil erosion and sedimentation. The various factors such as watershed size, slope, climate, land use may affect sediment delivery processes. Traditionally sediment delivery ratio prediction equations have been developed by relating watershed characteristics to measured sediment yield divided by predicted gross erosion. However, sediment prediction equations have been developed for only a few regions because of limited sediment data. Besides, little research has been done on the prediction of sediment delivery ratio for asia monsoon period in mountainous watershed. METHODS AND RESULTS: In this study Tank model was expanded and applied for estimating sediment yield to Oship River of east coast. The rainfall-runoff in 2006 was verified using the Tank model and we derived good result between observed and calculated discharge in 2009 at the same conditions. In relation to sediment yield, the sediment delivery rate of 2006 was very high than 2009 regardless of methods for estimating sediment load. It was thought to be affected by heavy rainfall due to the typhoon. CONCLUSION(s): For estimating sediment volume from watershed, long-term monitoring data on discharge and sediment is needed. This model will be able to apply to predict discharge and sediment yield simultaneously in ungauged area. This approach is more effective and less expensive method than the traditional method which needs a lot of data collection.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.69-83
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• 2023

Forest fires increase the risk of subsequent soil erosion and mass movement in burned areas, even under rainfall conditions below landslide alert thresholds, by destroying plants and vegetation and causing changes to soil properties. These effects of forest fires can alter runoff in burned areas by altering soil composition, component minerals, soil water repellency, soil mass stability, and soil fabric. Heat from forest fires not only burns shallow organic matter and plants but also spreads below the surface, affecting soil constituents including minerals. This study analyzed X-ray diffraction and physical properties of topsoil and subsoil obtained from both burned and non-burned areas to identify the composition and distribution of clay minerals in the soil. Small amounts of mullite, analcite, and hematite were identified in burned soils. Vermiculite and mixed-layer illite/vermiculite (I/V) were found in topsoil samples from burned areas but not in those from non-burned areas. These findings show changes in soil mineral composition caused by forest fires. Expansive clay minerals increase the volume of soil during rainfall, degrading the structural stability of slopes. Clay minerals generated in soil in burned areas are therefore likely to affect the long-term stability of slopes in mountainous areas.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Grassland and Forage Science
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.32-40
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• 2022

In this study, the appropriate unit cost in grassland establishment was redeveloped by the grassland establishment method and work criteria. The grassland establishment method was divided into tillage establishment (all logging) and no-tillage establishment (all logging and partial logging). The price for the work criteria by the establishment method was presented for each permission/authorization and establishment work. In permission/authorization for grassland establishment, the cost of each work criteria was of environmental impact (small scale environmental impact) assessment, disaster impact assessment, cadastral serving fee, forest survey, and connection fee for control of mountainous districts. In establishment was of logging, cleaning/gruffing, plowing/soil preparation, seeding, fertilization, livestock manure compost, seed, herbicide, labor cost (fertilizer, seed and herbicide), soil consolidation, cattle trail, and fence. The unit cost of grassland establishment was KRW 115,894,212 for the tillage establishment, and KRW 110,281,572 and KRW 106,680,122 for the all and partial logging of the no-tillage establishment, respectively. The current study redeveloped the establishment method, work criteria, and estimation of the unit cost of grassland establishment. It can be usefully used to carry out government projects to support related to establishment and maintenance of grassland.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.291-300
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• 2022

Artificial disturbance in mountainous areas increases the sensitivity to erosion by exposure of the subsoil with a low loam ratio to the surface. In this study, rainfall simulations were conducted to evaluate the erodibility of sand and loamy sand in the interrill erosion by the rainfall-induced sheet flow. The mean diameters of sand and loamy sand used in the experiment were 0.936 mm and 0.611 mm, respectively, and the organic matter content was 2.0% and 4.2%, respectively. In the experimental plot, the runoff coefficient of overland flow increased 1.16 times in loamy sand rather than sand. Mean sediment yields of loamy sand and sand by sheet erosion were 3.71kg/m²/hr and 1.13kg/m²/hr respectively. The erodibility, the rate of soil erosion for rainfall erosivity factor, was 3.65 times greater in loamy sand than in sand. As the gradient of the steep slope increased from 24° to 28°, the sediment concentration and the erodibility for two soils increased by about 20%. The erodibility factor K of sandy soils for small plots was overestimated compared to the measured erodibility. This means that RUSLE can overestimate the sediment yields by sheet erosion on sandy soils.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.112 no.4
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• pp.530-543
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• 2023

Societal value of the benefits forests provide has grown significantly, given their pivotal role in mitigating climate change and fostering the shift toward a carbon-neutral society. Due to the economic and public value of forests, which extends far beyond landowners and foresters, the forestry sector mutually interacts with society as a whole. Thus, understanding public perceptions and preferences concerning forests and forest policies from the societal viewpoint is vital for shaping future forest policy decisions. This research delved into evolving perceptions over the past 32 years, using a time-series analysis of data gathered from the 'Public awareness survey on forests'. This survey, conducted seven times between 1991 and 2023 by opinion poll agents, provides insights into changing sentiments. The findings reveal a notable increase in public satisfaction with overall forest policies. Specifically, positive sentiments were observed regarding forest rehabilitation, forest trails, education initiatives, and the establishment and functioning of forest recreation facilities. Conversely, the study highlights areas where public satisfaction remained relatively low, notably in matters concerning the use and conversion of mountainous regions, forest disaster prevention, and international forest cooperation. Additionally, the respondents emphasized the need for heightened attention to forest management, the development of forest roads, and increased efforts in overseas afforestation compared to current initiatives.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.353-364
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• 2009

This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of erosion control works on the stream ecosystem in a mountain torrential stream. The species composition of benthic macroinvertebrates and biological water quality were investigated before and after construction of erosion control works at 5 sites. The total number of benthic macroinvertebrates before construction was 3,086 individuals including 4 phyla, 6 classes, 11 orders, 22 families, and 25 species, but after construction it has decreased to 1,208 individuals including 4 phyla, 6 classes, 10 orders, 17 families, and 19 species. Especially, the diversity, richness, and evenness indices, which were calculated based on existing number of biological species, have decreased or not produced at the erosion control sites, where biological species were not found or the minimum number of species were found. The results of community analysis of benthic macroinvertebrates and ESB(Ecological Score of Benthic macroinvertebrate community) indicated that the environmental qualities of the stream based on saprobity, environmental condition, and water quality decreased after the construction at all sites: before construction, the top of the stream was satisfactory and some satisfactory, the middle was some defectiveness, and the lower was defectiveness and very defectiveness; after construction, all parts of the stream except some parts of the top were very defectiveness. Moreover, the water quality of torrential stream was rated between I to III before construction, but after construction, it declined to $IV{\sim}V$ except control. The habitat damage of benthic macro invertebrates occurred at all investigation sites after the construction of erosion control works led to reduction of the number of biological species and water quality deterioration. The results reported in this study were collected directly after the construction of erosion control works. Therefore, additional studies are needed to further explore the effect of disaster-prevention of erosion control works and the recovery process of stream ecosystem through long term monitoring.