• Journal of the Korean Geographical Society
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.255-276
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• 2015

This paper presents a multi-agent system model of land-use and cover changes, which is developed and applied to the Gariwang-san and its vicinity, located in Pyeongchang and Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon province, Korea. The Land Use Dynamics Simulator (LUDAS) framework of this study is well suited for representing the spatial heterogeneity and dynamic interactions between human and natural environment, and capturing the impacts of forest-opening policy interventions to future socio-economic and natural environment changes. The model consists of four components: (1) a system of human population, (2) a system of landscape environment, (3) decision-making procedures integrating human(or household), environmental and policy information into forest land-use decisions, and (4) a set of policy scenarios that are related to the forest-opening. The results of model simulation by different combination of various forest management scenarios are assessed by the levels of household income, ecosystem service value and income inequality in the study region. As a result, the optimal scenario of forest-opening policies in the study region is to open the forest to local residential community for the purpose of recreation, considering the distinctive topographical feature. The model developed in this research is expected to contribute to a decision support system for sustainable forest management and various land-use policies in Korea.