• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.53 no.2
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• pp.110-139
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• 2020

Reclamation is the act of creating new lands by constructing dikes in offshore tidal flats to utilize them for various purposes, including the establishment of farmland to secure food for an increasing population. Based on the fact that reclamation has resulted in drastic changes in the environmental, economic, social, and cultural aspects of land expansion and development, population movement, and the formation of cities since ancient times, I reviewed the value of reclamation sites and addressed the issue of how to preserve and utilize them. "Reclamation culture" refers collectively to the recognition and concept system, behavior styles, and cultural products created by changes in the environment, and the tangible, intangible, and natural heritage generated directly and indirectly by reclamation is defined as "reclamation cultural heritage". It shows that the historical background of reclamation accords with prevailing trends, and that the reclamation sites possess cultural heritage value due to their historical, academic, and scarce characteristics. Numerous reclamation cultural heritage sites at the Gwangwhal and Gyehwa dikes are on the verge of being destroyed, with their original function having ended after the construction of Saemangeum Sea Wall. I propose measures to preserve these under the principle that utilization is based on the basic premise of conservation. First of all, modern and contemporary reclamation sites must necessarily be designated and managed as registered cultural properties, local cultural heritage, future heritage, and agricultural heritage. In particular, as it has been confirmed that reclamation sites created after the Goryeo and Joseon dynasties and the 1950s have not been designated as cultural heritage sites. It is necessary to review the characteristics and values of such reclamation sites through a full survey of national reclamation data. Effective and sustainable utilization of reclamation cultural heritage, which has not been acknowledged in the past due to its close relationship with our lives, is necessary to search for hidden stories found within that heritage, to organize governance for the efficient use of reclamation resources, and to build a museum to collect and display the history and culture of the reclaimed areas. Finally, through links with countries with experience in reclamation, we will be able to cope jointly with international issues such as those pertaining to society, culture, and environment, and would be able to implement various projects to further the advancement of human beings.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.684-692
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• 2022

This study was conducted to assess ecosystem services provided for Saemangeum agricultural and life sites and surrounding areas and establish measures to enhance them. The ecosystem services in the Saemangeum region were found to be different depending on its land use type. Before reclamation, the quality of ecosystem service in the Saemangeum region was high in all aspects: supply, control, culture, and support service functions. After the reclamation, however, the quality of supply, regulating, and support services declined. Therefore, it is necessary to enhance the quality of regulating and support services provided by semi-natural habitats such as rice paddy and reservoirs to improve the ecosystem service of the Saemangeum agricultural and life site. The suggested service improvement includes transforming natural ecosystems, such as forests and rural areas, and vast agricultural land into rural tourism and ecotourism and strengthening cultural service functions centered on education and research related to agriculture. To this end, it is necessary to utilize large agricultural land and agricultural infrastructure to promote agricultural production and rural tourism and government support for areas where the aging population is a problem.

• Journal of Science and Technology Studies
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• v.4 no.1 s.7
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• pp.1-30
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• 2004

In this paper, I have attempted to show how the environmental controversy surrounding the Saemangeurn Reclamation Project in Korea has been framed as narrow scientific debates. First of all, science, or specifically the Expert Review Pane, has played dual roles in the controversy. On the one hand, it has contributed to illuminating the future environmental impacts of reclamation, by so doing, to providing a momentum to reconsider the project. This has significant meaning that environmental concerns successfully checked the symbolic national project of developmental era through adopting a joint-investigation scheme that guaranteed participation of environmental groups on an equal footing with the government. On the other hand, by limiting the scope and participants of discussion, it fundamentally blocked the possibilities of public debates and deliberative decision-making with full considerations of the political, social, and cultural aspects of the controversy. I have shown that this is due to the realist belief shared by both the developers and the environmentalists in Korea that 'proper' science would disclose the truth. Environmental groups, in particular, were naive in evaluating the role of scientific expertise in the controversy and neglected the political role of the Expert Review Pane as a ritual. In opposition to the realist argument, I have shown through the analysis of the water quality debates concerning the future fresh water lakes that scientific 'facts' were not discovered but constructed through complex negotiations, conflicts, and compromises among related actors. The framing of the controversy as an experts' debate has resulted in the exclusion of an important actor from the discussion. Little attention has been paid throughout the controversy to the very people who have lived in the Saemangeum area for generations and will lose their livelihood all together soon. About 20,000 fishermen are living on the Saemangeum tidal flats.

• Environmental and Resource Economics Review
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.233-260
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• 2018

The West Coast is known as one of the world's three largest intertidal mudflats but the mudflat ecosystems have been constantly destroyed by various reclamation projects and industrial complexes. This study intends to estimate the economic values of major ecosystem services provided by the Seocheon intertidal flats using a choice modeling method. The benefits of the intertidal flats are categorized as four different attributes: number of migratory birds (related to biodiversity and cultural services), production of fish and shellfish (regulating services and habitats), tourism activities (cultural services), and number of fishing households in local communities (cultural services). Study results show that the general public enjoys the economic benefits of 1.777 trillion won (900 million won/hectare) as of 2015 in order to preserve 1,200ha of Seocheon mudflat. Assuming that future generations continue to enjoy these economic benefits of mudflat conservation, the annual value converted is about 64.7 billion won/year, corresponding to 53.9 million won/hectare per year. Individuals are willing to pay are expected to maintain their entire life in the 1,000 households living in the Seocheon tidal-flat fishing village, with an average of 11,000 won per person and an additional 50,000 tourist activities per year. It was estimated to have the amount of payment of 9,000 won. An individual's marginal willingness to pay was estimated to be about 11,000 won per year for supporting a total of 1,000 fishing households, 6,000 won to provide tourism activities of 50,000 visitors, and 9,000 won to provide the habitats of 90,000 migratory birds. For segmentation analysis, residents of Seocheon did not place significant values for the attributes besides migratory bird conservation. However, those of Gunsan showed relatively low margtinal willingness to pay for conservation of migratory birds and fishing villages but showed similar preferences for the maintenance of tourism activities compared to the general public. The results imply that the introduction of economic incentive system is needed to effectively manage and conserve ecosystem services of specific intertidal flats.