• Title/Summary/Keyword: Forest Cover

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Geographical features and types and changes of agricultural land uses in North Korea

  • Lee, Kyo-Suk;Ryu, Jin-Hee;Lee, Dong-Sung;Hong, Byeong-Deok;Seo, Il-Hwan;Kim, Sung Chul;Chung, Doug-Young
    • Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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    • v.46 no.1
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    • pp.205-217
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    • 2019
  • The aim of this study was to identify land resources because food production and supply in North Korea have been at risk due to variations in its seasonal climate. More than three-fifths of the soils are locally derived from the weathering of granitic rocks or various kinds of schists developed from crystalline rocks. Well-developed reddish brown soils derived from limestone are found in the North Hwanghae province and in the southern part of the South Pyeongan province. Additionally, a narrow strip of similarly fertile land runs through the eastern seaboard of the Hamgyong and Kangwon Provinces. The loss of clay particles and organic matter are major causes of degradation in the soil physical and chemical properties in North Korea. 75% of the areas converted from forests became croplands, and 69% of the land converted to croplands came from forests. The net forest loss was quite small from the 1990s to the 2000s. However, deforestation in areas with a slightly lower elevation and gentler slope between 1997 and 2014 led to severe soil erosion resulting in a drastic change in the physical and chemical properties of the soil which influenced cropland stability and productivity. Therefore, the drastic changes in land cover as well as in the physical and chemical properties of the soil caused by various geographical features have seriously influenced the productivity of crops in North Korea.

Analyzing Climate Zones Using Hydro-Meteorological Observation Data in Andong Dam Watershed, South Korea (수문기상 관측정보를 활용한 안동댐 유역 기후권역 구분 및 분석)

  • Kim, Sea Jin;Lim, Chul-Hee;Lim, Yoon-Jin;Moon, Jooyeon;Song, Cholho;Lee, Woo-Kyun
    • Journal of Climate Change Research
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    • v.7 no.3
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    • pp.269-282
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    • 2016
  • Watershed area can be submerged due to constructions and management of dams, and these change can impact not only on ecosystem and environment of river basin area but also on local climate. This study is conducted to construct and classify climate zones of Andong Dam watershed where the area is submerged due to the construction of the dam. By applying Principal Components Analysis (PCA) and Getis-Ord $Gi^*$ statistics, three climate zones were classified for the result. Each zone was then analyzed and validated with climatic and geological features including topography, land cover, and forest type map. As a result of the analysis, there was a difference in temperature, elevation, precipitation and tree species distribution among the zones. Also, an analysis of land cover map showed that there were more agricultural land near Andong Reservoir. This study on the climatic classification is considered to be useful as the basis for decision-making or policy enforcement regarding ecosystem, environmental management or climate change response.

A Study on a Quantitative Method in Estimating Forest Effects for Streamflow Regulation (II) - Mainly Dealing with Application of Coefficient for Slope Roughness - (삼림이수기능(森林理水機能)의 정량적(定量的) 평가방법(平價方法)에 관한 연구(硏究)(II) - 조도계수(粗度係數)의 응용(應用)을 중심(中心)으로 -)

  • Lee, Heon Ho
    • Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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    • v.81 no.4
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    • pp.337-345
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    • 1992
  • In this research, a kinematic wave model was applied for the runoff analysis, Regulation of streamflow was estimated by the calibration of roughness coefficient as a parameter. The data analyzed were obtained from Ananomiya and Shirasaka experimental basins at Tokyo University Forest in Aichi. Estimation methods and characteristics of roughness coefficient as a evaluation method of hydrological function of forest are summarized as follows ; 1. Roughness coefficient($N_s$) indicates the resistance of hillslope to the flowing water of surface runoff. There exists an hypothesis that resistance of hillslope to flowing water increase with the growth forest and development of the $A_o$ layer. 2. Roughness coefficient($N_s$) was estimated by the parameter when the stream direct runoff was calculated by using the kinematic wave. 3. Secular change of '$N_s$' in ananomiya has a curve which has an upper limit and increases exponentially near the limit. The curve quickly increased from 1935 to 1945 when results of afforestation for erosion control were thought to be effective. On the other hand, slight increase of '$N_s$' in Shirasaka indicates that there was not such a big change in the surface of soil layer. 4. The increase of '$N_s$' was related with decrease of direct runoff and increase of base flow. It was recognized that the rate of direct runoff decreased with the improvement of forest physiognomy and the rate of base flow was increased. But absolute value of water runoff per one storm decreased in chronological order.

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Characteristics of Water Distribution and Transport Depending on Soil Evolution in the Different Forest Stands (상이(相異)한 임분(林分)의 토층분화(土層分化)에 따른 수분분포(水分分布)와 이동특성(移動特性))

  • Jin, Hyun-O;Chung, Doug-Young;Son, Yowhan;Joo, Yeong-Teuk;Oh, Jong-Min
    • Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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    • v.89 no.1
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    • pp.24-32
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    • 2000
  • We investigated the patterns of soil horizon evolution and its water distribution on three different forest stands covered with Larix leptolepis, Pinus koraiensis, and Qercus mongolica on the Experimental Forest of Kyunghee University, located in Kwangju, Kyunggi-Do. Compared to the properties of depths of O and A horizons evolved on the Pinus koraiensis stand, the depths of O and A horizons on the forest stands of Larix leptolepis and Qercus mongolica were shallower, indicating that the soil horizon were deeply influenced by geographical characteristics, its erosive and sedimentary distinction, vegetation cover and its population density. And the bulk densities of the sites selected were lower in the high slope gradient than that in the lower slope gradient at the same depth of soil profile. Therefore, the changes of the soil bulk densities were closely related to the soil organic matter and the vertical transport of soil particle throughout soil depths. On the other hand, the bulk density and organic matter content in soil can influence the water transport phenomena, resulting in decrease of the hydraulic conductivity as the increase in the bulk density, while the organic matter can not affect the hydraulic conductivity on the soil surface layer. For a rainfall infiltration characteristics from a lysimeter experiment established on the stand of Larix leptolepis, the bulk density and slope gradient strongly influenced the vertical transport of water, as well as the lateral movement of rainfall. Conclusively, the characteristics of water movement and distribution in the forest stand can be determined not by the geographical factor such as slope gradient but also by the bulk density and organic matter content remained in soils.

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Wildfire Severity Mapping Using Sentinel Satellite Data Based on Machine Learning Approaches (Sentinel 위성영상과 기계학습을 이용한 국내산불 피해강도 탐지)

  • Sim, Seongmun;Kim, Woohyeok;Lee, Jaese;Kang, Yoojin;Im, Jungho;Kwon, Chunguen;Kim, Sungyong
    • Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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    • v.36 no.5_3
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    • pp.1109-1123
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    • 2020
  • In South Korea with forest as a major land cover class (over 60% of the country), many wildfires occur every year. Wildfires weaken the shear strength of the soil, forming a layer of soil that is vulnerable to landslides. It is important to identify the severity of a wildfire as well as the burned area to sustainably manage the forest. Although satellite remote sensing has been widely used to map wildfire severity, it is often difficult to determine the severity using only the temporal change of satellite-derived indices such as Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR). In this study, we proposed an approach for determining wildfire severity based on machine learning through the synergistic use of Sentinel-1A Synthetic Aperture Radar-C data and Sentinel-2A Multi Spectral Instrument data. Three wildfire cases-Samcheok in May 2017, Gangreung·Donghae in April 2019, and Gosung·Sokcho in April 2019-were used for developing wildfire severity mapping models with three machine learning algorithms (i.e., Random Forest, Logistic Regression, and Support Vector Machine). The results showed that the random forest model yielded the best performance, resulting in an overall accuracy of 82.3%. The cross-site validation to examine the spatiotemporal transferability of the machine learning models showed that the models were highly sensitive to temporal differences between the training and validation sites, especially in the early growing season. This implies that a more robust model with high spatiotemporal transferability can be developed when more wildfire cases with different seasons and areas are added in the future.

Impacts of Three-dimensional Land Cover on Urban Air Temperatures (도시기온에 작용하는 입체적 토지피복의 영향)

  • Jo, Hyun-Kil;Ahn, Tae-Won
    • Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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    • v.37 no.3
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    • pp.54-60
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    • 2009
  • The purpose of this study is to analyze the impacts of three-dimensional land cover on changing urban air temperatures and to explore some strategies of urban landscaping towards mitigation of heat build-up. This study located study spaces within a diameter of 300m around 24 Automatic Weather Stations(AWS) in Seoul, and collected data of diverse variables which could affect summer energy budgets and air temperatures. The study also selected reflecting study objectives 6 smaller-scale spaces with a diameter of 30m in Chuncheon, and measured summer air temperatures and three-dimensional land cover to compare their relationships with results from Seoul's AWS. Linear regression models derived from data of Seoul's AWS revealed that vegetation volume, greenspace area, building volume, building area, population density, and pavement area contributed to a statistically significant change in summer air temperatures. Of these variables, vegetation and building volume indicated the highest accountability for total variability of changes in the air temperatures. Multiple regression models derived from combinations of the significant variables also showed that both vegetation and building volume generated a model with the best fitness. Based on this multiple regression model, a 10% increase of vegetation volume decreased the air temperatures by approximately 0.14%, while a 10% increase of building volume raised them by 0.26%. Relationships between Chuncheon's summer air temperatures and land cover distribution for the smaller-scale spaces also disclosed that the air temperatures were negatively correlated to vegetation volume and greenspace area, while they were positively correlated to hardscape area. Similarly to the case of Seoul's AWS, the air temperatures for the smaller-scale spaces decreased by 0.32% ($0.08^{\circ}C$) as vegetation volume increased by 10%, based on the most appropriate linear model. Thus, urban landscaping for the reduction of summer air temperatures requires strategies to improve vegetation volume and simultaneously to decrease building volume. For Seoul's AWS, the impact of building volume on changing the air temperatures was about 2 times greater than that of vegetation volume. Wall and rooftop greening for shading and evapotranspiration is suggested to control atmospheric heating by three-dimensional building surfaces, enlarging vegetation volume through multilayered plantings on soil surfaces.

Syntaxonomical and Synecological Description on the Forest Vegetation of Juwangsan National Park, South Korea (주왕산국립공원 삼림식생의 군락분류와 군락생태)

  • Oh, Hae-Sung;Lee, Gyeong-Yeon;Kim, Jong-Won
    • Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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    • v.32 no.1
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    • pp.118-131
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    • 2018
  • The forest vegetation of Juwangsan National Park, which is famous for its towering scenic valleys, was syntaxonomically described. The study adopted the $Z{\ddot{u}}rich$-Montpellier School's method emphasizing a matching between species composition and habitat conditions. A combined cover degree and the r-NCD (relative net contribution degree) were used to determine a performance of 265 plant species listed-up in a total of 52 phytosociological $relev{\acute{e}}s$. Nine plant communities were classified through a series of table manipulations, and their distribution and actual homotoneity($H_{act}$) were analyzed. Syntaxa described were Carex gifuensis-Quercus mongolica community, Athyrium yokoscense-Quercus mongolica communiy, Arisaema amurense-Quercus serrata community, Lespedeza maximowiczii var. tomentella-Quercus variabilis community, Tilia rufa-Quercus dentata community, Carex ciliatomarginata-Carpinus laxiflora community, Aristolochia manshuriensis-Zelkova serrata community, Onoclea orientalis-Fraxinus mandshurica community, and Carex humilis var. nana-Pinus densiflora community. A zonal distribution was reviewed and the altitude of about 700 m was the transition zone between the cool-temperate central montane zone (Lindero-Quercenion mongolicae region) and southern submontane zone (Callicarpo-Quercenion serratae region). Only 19 taxa were associated with r-NCD 10% or more, most of which were tree species occurring in the Lindero-Quercenion and some of which was a member of open forests. Species composition of forest vegetation was much less homogeneous, showing the lowest $H_{act}$. Nearly natural forests and/or secondary forests in the Juwangsan National Park were defined as a regional vegetation type, which reflects much stronger continental climate in the Daegu regional bioclimatic subdistrict, rhyolitic tuff predominant, and wildfire interference.

Vegetation Types & Floristic Composition of Native Conifer Forests in The Ridge of The Baekdudaegan, South Korea (백두대간 마루금일대 침엽수림의 식생형과 식물상 조성)

  • Park, Sang-Gon;Cho, Hyun-Je;Lee, Chang-Bae
    • Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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    • v.98 no.4
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    • pp.464-471
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    • 2009
  • Vegetation types of the native conifer forests in the ridge of the Baekdudaegan, South Korea, were classified using the Braun-Blanquet method and TWINSPAN and its ecological characteristics analyzed with special repect to floristic composition. The vegetation type was classified into two types (Pinus densiflora-Carex humilis and Pinus koraiensis-Dryopteris crassirhizoma types) and seven groups. Mean species richness and total plot cover per unit area ($/100m^2$) were $21.9{\pm}8.9$ spp. and $146.9{\pm}32.3$%, respectively. The plant species composed of 82 families, 217 genera, and 387 species and the three major families, Compositae, Liliaceae, and Rosaceae, made up about 25.6% of the total species. The 7.8% of total families were the families with occurrence of only one species. The highest relative importance value was 19.2, the species belonged to Pinaceae and the pattern was different from species richness pattern of other families.

A Study on Determination of the Matching Size of IKONOS Stereo Imagery (IKONOS 스테레오 영상의 매칭사이즈 결정연구)

  • Lee, Hyo-Seong;Ahn, Ki-Weon;Lee, Chang-No;Seo, Doo-Cheon
    • Proceedings of the Korean Society of Surveying, Geodesy, Photogrammetry, and Cartography Conference
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    • 2007.04a
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    • pp.201-205
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    • 2007
  • In the post-Cold War era, acquisition technique of high-resolution satellite imagery (HRSI) has begun to commercialize. IKONOS-2 satellite imaging data is supplied for the first time in the 21st century. Many researchers testified mapping possibility of the HRSI data instead of aerial photography. It is easy to renew and automate a topographical map because HRSI not only can be more taken widely and periodically than aerial photography, but also can be directly supplied as digital image. In this study matching size of IKONOS Geo-level stereo image is presented lot production of digital elevation model (DEM). We applied area based matching method using correlation coefficient of pixel brightness value between the two images. After matching line (where "matching line" implies straight line that is approximated to complex non-linear epipolar geometry) is established by exterior orientation parameters (EOPs) to minimize search area, the matching is tarried out based on this line. The experiment on matching size is performed according to land cover property, which is divided off into four areas (water, urban land, forest land and agricultural land). In each of the test areas, window size for the highest correlation coefficient is selected as propel size for matching. As the results of experiment, the proper size was selected as $123{\times}123$ pixels window, $13{\times}13$ pixels window, $129{\times}129$ pixels window and $81{\times}81$ pixels window in the water area, urban land, forest land and agricultural land, respectively. Of course, determination of the matching size by the correlation coefficient may be not absolute appraisal method. Optimum matching size using the geometric accuracy therefore, will be presented by the further work.

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Initial Responses of Quercus serrata Seedlings and Forest Understory to Experimental Gap Treatments

  • Cho, Yong-Chan;Kim, Jun-Soo;Lee, Chang-Seok;Cho, Hyun-Je;Bae, Kwan-Ho
    • Journal of Ecology and Environment
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    • v.32 no.2
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    • pp.87-96
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    • 2009
  • Pinus thunbergii plantations in Pohang-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, Korea, are of low ecological quality, with arrested succession and a high proportion of ruderal species. To improve the quality of the habitat, we created canopy gaps ($\sim42\;m^2$) and monitored changes in abiotic (light availability, canopy openness) and biotic (survival and growth of seedlings and understory communities) variables in 2007 and 2008 in plots that had received one of five types of treatment: cutting of canopy trees and removal of the understory (CU), cutting of canopy trees only (C), girdling of canopy trees and removal of the understory (GU), girdling of canopy trees (G) or control. Each treatment was applied to three replicate plots. Abiotic variables did not significantly differ among treatments. Survival rates of target species were slightly lower in the CU, G and control conditions. Based on logistic regression analysis, the only significant growth factor affecting survival was height growth. Positive effects of seedling height and leaf area growth on survival were also detected, but did not reach statistical significance. In treatment G, gradual improvement of overstory conditions and mitigation of competition by limitation of disturbance to the understory community were likely to have promoted seedling growth. There were no significant effects of gap treatments on changes in species abundance (cover and richness) and composition of understory between the study years. This result implies that the small gaps created in our study may be below the threshold size to affect understory growth. However, the results of this study are based on a short-term investigation of only two years. Long-term research is strongly recommended to clarify the effects of gap treatment on plant communities in afforested areas.