• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.47 no.2
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• pp.155-165
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• 2021

Objectives: Acute exposure to high concentrations of chemicals can occur when a chemical accident takes place. As such exposure can cause ongoing environmental pollution, such as in the soil and groundwater, there is a need for a tool that can assess health effects in the long term. The purpose of this study was assessing the health risks of residents living near a chemical accident site due to long-term exposure while considering the temporal concentration changes of the toxic chemicals leaked during the accident until their extinction in the environment using a multimedia environmental dynamics model. Methods: A health risk assessment was conducted on three cases of formaldehyde chemical accidents. In this study, health risk assessment was performed using a multimedia environmental dynamics model that considers the behavior of the atmosphere, soil, and water. In addition, the extinction period of formaldehyde in the environment was regarded as extinction in the environment when the concentration in the air and soil fell below the background concentration prior to the accident. The subjects of health risk assessment were classified into four groups according to age: 0-9 years old, 10-18 years old, 19-64 years old, and over 65 years old. Carcinogenic risk assessment by respiratory exposure and non-carcinogenic risk assessment by soil intake were conducted as well. Results: In the assessment of carcinogenic risk due to respiratory exposure, the excess carcinogenic risk did not exceed 1.0×10-6 in all three chemical accidents, so there was no health effect due to the formaldehyde chemical accident. As a result of the evaluation of non-carcinogenic risk due to soil intake, none of the three chemical accidents had a risk index of 1, so there was no health effect. For all three chemical accidents, the excess cancer risk and hazard index were the highest in the age group 0-9. Next, 10-18 years old, 65 years old or older, and 19-64 years old showed the highest risk. Conclusion: This study considers environmental changes after a chemical accident occurs and until the substance disappears from the environment. It also conducts a health risk assessment by reflecting the characteristics of the long-term persistence and concentration change over time. It is thought that it is of significance as a health risk assessment study reflecting the exposure characteristics of the accident substance for an actual chemical accident.

• Korean Journal of Breeding Science
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.84-87
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• 2008

Kokang is a high-quality, disease resistant and high-yielding Rehmannia glutinosa cultivar developed by the medicinal crop breeding team of National Institute of Crop Science, RDA, during the period from 1997 to 2005. The reproduction of Rehmania glutinosa has been accomplished mainly by vegetative propagation with its seedlings have many variants. The cultivar was selected from seedling of Jihwang 1. The plant type of Kokang is some rising from ground. It has higher disease resistance, catalpol content and extract content compared with Jihwang 1. Regional yield trials conducted at three site from 2003 to 2005. The root yield of Kokang was 11.8ton per hectare, which was increased 13% compared with a check variety, Jihwang 1. This cultivar is adaptable to the whole of Korea except for mountain areas.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.312-331
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• 2019

An offshore waste disposal facility refers to a landfill site for final landfilling of stabilized inorganic solid waste such as land and marine waste incineration materials, and the aim of such a facility is to solve the problem of insufficient waste disposal space on land and create and develop environmentally friendly marine spaces. The purpose of this study is to prepare guidelines for the construction of offshore waste disposal facilities, which reflect the need and importance of paying sufficient heed to environmental considerations from the initial stage of the project, in order to investigate, predict, and assess how such guidelines will affect the marine environment in relation to the construction of offshore waste disposal facilities, with the goal of minimizing the impact on and damage to the environment. For the purpose of this research, guidelines focusing on the construction of offshore waste disposal facilities were derived through an analysis of domestic cases and similar foreign cases and an assessment of their level of compliance with existing EIA guidelines through the operation of a discussion forum. In order to review the EIA report on similar cases in Korea, 17 EIA documents (2005~2016) for dredged soil dumping areas and ash ponds of thermal power plants were analyzed to investigate the status of marine organisms, marine physics, marine water quality, and marine sediment and to understand what types of problems can occur and what improvement measures can be taken. The purpose of these guidelines were to minimize damage to the marine environment by promoting EIA protocols in accordance with scientific and systematic procedures, to reduce the consultation period related to projects, to resolve social conflicts, and to reduce economic costs.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.168-177
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• 2019

This study was conducted to examine the impact of various environmental factors on the feeding behavior of black-faced spoonbills Platalea minor known to use rice fields during the breeding season. We surveyed the rice fields three times a month from April to June 2017 and from April to June 2018. We counted the number of black-faced spoonbills and measured the environmental factors such as the water depth, paddy type by cultivation stage, and biomass of potential prey that are expected to affect black-faced spoonbills. We also filmed the feeding behavior of black-faced spoonbills to examine differences in feeding behavior by environmental factors. The survey showed that the number of black-faced spoonbills reached its peak from late April to late May which was the breeding period. Among a total of 308 black-faced spoonbills observed, 86.4% (n=266) were observed feeding on rice paddies, 90.6% (n=279) were adults, and none was observed on dry paddies. The biomass of rice paddy increased significantly since May when fish started hatching, and there was a significant difference in the amount of biomass between the rice paddies where black-faced spoonbills were observed and other rice paddies. The analysis of the feeding behavior of black-faced spoonbills showed that the feeding efficiency and feeding success rate of black-faced spoonbills increased significantly when the amount of biomass soared and that the number of steps of black-faced spoonbills per minute increased greatly after rice planting was completed. The number of bill sweeping was not related to the feeding efficiency, feeding success rate, and paddy type by cultivation stage.

• 재활복지
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.127-149
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• 2013

This study analyzed the hazard of unemployment and the influencing factors on the rate. Data came from the Panel Survey of Employment for the Disabled(PSED), 2010-2012, which is a longitudinal survey for 5,092 disabled people in Korea. For the main purpose of this study, the life-table method was used for describing the patterns of unemployment duration by disabled, and the cox proportional hazard model was used to identify significant factors on the unemployment duration. The results were as follows. First, according to the life table analysis, the unemployment rate to remain until the longest period of unemployment(25month) is 90.5%, and the rate of entry into the labor market was only 9.5%. Overall, the unemployment maintenance rate was high, the unemployment escape rate decreased after 12month. Second, looking at the results from the cox proportional hazards model, the unemployment escape possibility were increased for those who are male, are non-public benefit recipient with disability, have mild disability, and have less discrimination experiences. With these results, disability discrimination act which can reduce the disability discrimination in employment site should be strengthened. Also, the scheme of Nation Basic Protection Program should be modified to attract the employment of recipients with disability. Finally, policy targets having employment escape difficulty, such as women with disability, people with severe disabilities should be departmentalized. And employment service is provided in accord with the individual needs and characteristics.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Urban Environment
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.455-463
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• 2018

This study was carried out to assess the distribution and pollution level of organic matters and nutrients in surface sediments of the Yeongsan River Basin. The surface sediments were collected from the mainstream (12) and tributaries sites (4) for two years from 2015 to 2016, and the particle sizes, organic matters (Ignition Loss, COD, TOC) and nutrients (TN, TP, SRP) were analyzed. The distribution of particle sizes was dominated by sand in the upstream sites (MS1-MS7) and by silt loam in the downstream sites (MS8-MS12), but MS3 and MS6, located slightly upstream of the two weirs, were found to be mostly loamy sand and silt loam, respectively. As a results of the correlation assessment, the organic matters (IL, COD, TOC) were strongly correlated with particle sizes, while the nutrients (TP, SRP) were weak except for TN. The concentrations of organic matter and nutrient were higher at the downstream and the sites nearby the two weirs (MS3, MS6). In particular, the TP concentration at the MS3 site sampled in the second half period of the years was higher than that in the first half periods. Comparing of sediments criteria, the organic matters and nutrients were evaluated to have almost no toxic effects at all sites.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.45 no.1
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• pp.34-51
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• 2012

Jangneung (the Royal Tomb of King Danjong) and Sareung (the Royal Tomb of Queen Jeongsun) are simple in their design and layout. Not only are the sizes of the stone statues small, but stone soldiers are not installed at all despite the fact that Danjong at one point served as the King of Joseon. Moreover, only a pair of seoksu (stone animal) is installed for each Tomb. These royal tombs were originally made as common tombs and later upgraded as Royal Tombs when Danjong's royal status was reinstated posthumously in 1698. Thus, in comparison to royal tombs in general, the scale of these tombs is by far modest. For this paper, archival records and other literature for the burial upgrade process and the stone sculptures are examined; also, the stone sculptures have been examined and measured on-site, and they have been compared and analyzed based on the data thus obtained. Furthermore, this paper traces the historical context of the period in which the simplification of the stone sculptures took place for Jangneung and Sareung. The paper argues that the cause of the modest scale lies not so much in the fact that King Danjong had been dethroned as a commoner, but in the cataclysmic famine and epidemic that swept the country during the time when the two royal tombs were upgraded as such.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.114-125
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• 2016

Lacquer is one of the most widely used natural resin in East Asia since Neolithic Age. As a major ingredient of lacquerware, lacquer is waterproof, insect-proof and rot-proof to be durable and anti-abrasion, generally utilized for mainly painting purpose. According to lacquerware excavated from several sites of Japan and China, lacquerware seems to appear in Neolithic Age. On the other hand in case of excavation research in Korea, lacquerwares are found after the Bronze Age. The initial purpose of lacquer is estimated to be adhesive, regarding the literatures mentioning bitumen(Yeoksceong ), animal glue(Kyeo) and egg alumen(Nanbaek). Especially piece of jar coffin unearthed in Pyeongtaek Daechu-ri site had trace of restoration by lacquer and hemp as an evidence of lacquer for adhesion in Pre-Three Kingdoms period. Since then a trend to restore the broken ceramics with lacquer and decorate with golden foil lasted especially in Joseon Dynasty. In the field of gold plated lacquer method, mother-of-pearl inlaying technique for lacquerware and restoration of buildings, lacquer is still used as adhesive. Due to matter of reversibility lacquer is being avoided for conservation and restoration of cultural heritage. Lacquer as a traditional material for adhesive since ancient times, however, has advantage in adhesion strength and durability. Because synthetic resin adhesive has problem of emission of volatile organic compounds and aging over time, lacquer receives attention recently. On the contrary, by combination adhesive from mixing lacquer and animal glue, already proved the possibility of applicability and chemical modification. A research to utilize lacquer as modern paint or functional material is also conducted continuously also in China and Japan. To put traditional material into practical use and modernize, chemical research from the molecular level of the lacquer is necessary in the near future.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.108 no.2
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• pp.189-199
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• 2019

The forest management paradigm has recently shifted from focusing on commercial production to focusing on ecosystem management. Accordingly, a natural seedling regeneration method that has a naturally high affinity has attracted much attention in recent years. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship among various environmental factors, lower stratum vegetation, and seedling regeneration in Pinus densiflora forests. The survey site comprised 50 sectors divided using the line transect method, and the survey data were divided into those from wet habitat (19 sites) and dry habitat (31 sites), depending on the soil humidity, and were analyzed separately to show the close relationship between soil humidity and natural seedling regeneration. As a result, the dry habitat exhibited high seedling density (157,419 trees/ha), with the main species being Quercus serrata, Zanthoxylum piperitum, Smilax china, and Pueraria lobata, while wet habitat exhibited low seedling density (57,895 trees/ha), with the main species being Stephanandra incisa, Castanea crenata, Lespedeza maximowiczii, Lysimachia barystachys, Aralia elata, and Styrax japonicus. The height and root-collar diameter under wet conditions exhibited faster growth than those under dry conditions. Height growth by the root-collar diameter in dry habitat increased faster than that in wet habitat. It was also confirmed that seedling regeneration in wet habitat exhibited a rapid growth pattern 5 years after germination. These results suggest that the seedlings begin to grow more rapidly after a period of suppression by competition with surrounding plants. Considering an ecosystem or ecological management approach, specific practices, such as bush control and vine clearing in wet habitats, should be more intensively conducted, especially at the beginning of the management operations.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.97-109
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• 2019

Degree days have been determined using temperature data measured at nearby weather stations to a site of interest to produce information for supporting decision-making on agricultural production. Alternatively, the data products of Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) can be used for estimation of degree days in a given region, e.g., Korean Peninsula. The objective of this study was to develop a simple tool for processing the MODIS product for estimating cooling degree days (CDD), which would help assessment of heat stress conditions for a crop as well as energy requirement for greenhouses. A set of scripts written in R was implemented to obtain temperature profile data for the region of interest. These scripts had functionalities for processing spatial data, which include reprojection, mosaicking, and cropping. A module to extract air temperature at the surface pressure level was also developed using R extension packages such as rgdal and RcppArmadillo. Random forest (RF) models, which estimate mean temperature and CDD with a different set of MODIS data, were trained at 34 sites in South Korea during 2009 - 2018. Then, the values of CDD were calculated over Korean peninsula during the same period using those RF models. It was found that the CDD estimates using the MODIS data explained >74% of the variation in the CDD measurements at the weather stations in North Korea as well as South Korea. These results indicate that temperature data derived from the MODIS atmospheric products would be useful for reliable estimation of CDD. Our results also suggest that the MODIS data can be used for preparation of weather input data for other temperature-based agro-ecological models such as growing degree days or chill units.