• Journal of Korean Society of societal Security
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.61-66
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• 2008

More than 70% of Korea consists of mountainous area and during the construction of roads and railroads many cut-slopes are inevitably formed. A number of environmental factors, such as the rainy season and frost heave during winter/thaw during spring, can result in rock falls and landslides. The failure of slopes is increasing every year and can cause damage to vehicles, personal injury and even fatality. In order to help protect people and property, there is a need for real-time monitoring systems to detect the early stages of slope failures. In this respect, the GMG has been using Translation Rotation Settlement (TRS) sensor units installed on slopes to monitor movement in real-time. However, the data lines of this system are vulnerable and the whole system can be damaged by a single lightning strike. In order to overcome this, GMG have proposed the use of Ubiquitous Sensor Networks (USN). The adoption of a USN system in lieu of data cables can help to minimize the risk of lightning damage and improve the reliability of slope monitoring systems.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.203-206
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• 2004

Fodder supply condition was studied at 41 nomadic families in Gobi, Southern Semi-Desert area in Mongolia, from Dec. 1994 to Apr. 1995 to determine problems in cold, feed deficient season for establishment of sustainable livestock production system. The conditions of two family groups: those located in sparse vegetation (FG1), and those in comparably dense (FG2), were also compared. Commercial concentrate feed (concentrate), hay and Zoodoi were prepared for supplementation. Zoodoi was hand-made feed made mainly of Allium mongolicum and Allium polyrrhizum. Allium mongolicum tended to be used at FG1 frequently, and Allium polyrrhizum at FG2 depend on differences of micro vegetation. 44%, 90% and 39% of families prepared 165.6 kg of concentrate, 301.6 kg of hay and 6.8 kg of Zoodoi per sheep and goat (small livestock) on the average, respectively. The ratio of families that used concentrate at FG1 was smaller than those at FG2, though there were no significant differences on the amount. More hay was fed at FG1 than at FG2, and Zoodoi tended to be fed more in the FG1 group. Recipients were mostly restricted to young, female and sick small livestock that use the feeds effectively. More families gave concentrate and hay to the young than to the females and sick. They also gave more Zoodoi to young and sick animals than to females in this area. In the FG1 group, no differences were found between recipients on the concentrate supply. More families supplied hay to young animals than to sick ones, and Zoodoi was fed more to sick animals than to young and females. On the other hand, those in the FG2 found, more families fed fodders to young than to female and sick regardless of the kinds of feeds. The amount of fodder supplementation in the studied area was restricted, but accurate techniques of nomads to adapt the situation were clarified.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.32 no.12
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• pp.883-898
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• 2023

To investigate the occurrence characteristics and types of fog on the Korean Peninsula over the past three years (2020 to 2022), data from 96 synoptic meteorological observatories and 21 ocean buoys were collected and analyzed. We included precipitation fog, which occurs after precipitation events, and cloud-base lowering fog, which is caused by the development of lower-level clouds, with a total six subtypes of fog. In the case of cloud-base lowering fog, the occurrence frequency at 2.6% was not high at 2.6%, but the duration of low visibility below 200 m was very long at 6.9 hours. The seasonal frequency of fog is low in spring and winter, high in summer over islands and coastal areas, and high in autumn over inland areas. The frequency of inland fog, which is characterized by high radiation fog and dense fog, requires attention in terms of transportation safety, with an occurrence time of 0500 LST to 1000 LST. Therefore, systematic analysis of precipitation fog and cloud-base lowering, as well as radiation and advection fog, is required in the analysis of recognizing fog as a disaster and causing transportation disorders.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.1-11
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• 2011

A chronic drought stress has been imposed during non-rainy season(from winter to spring) since 1990s. We faced the most significant water crisis in 2001, and the drought was characterized by sultry weather and severe drought on a national scale. It has been widely acknowledged that the drought related damage is 2-3 times serious than floods. In the list of the world's largest natural disaster compiled by NOAA, 4 of the top 5 disasters are droughts. And according to the analysis from the NDMC report, the drought has the highest annual average damage among all the disasters. There was a very serious impact on the economic such as rising consumer price during the 2001 spring drought in Korea. There has been flood prevention measures implemented at national-level but for mitigation of droughts, there are only plans aimed at emergency (short-term) restoration rather than the comprehensive preventive measures. In addition, there is a lack of a clear set of indicators to express drought situation objectively, and therefore it is important and urgent to begin a systematic study. In this study, a nonstationary downscaling model using RCM based climate change scenario was first applied to simulate precipitation, and the simulated precipitation data was used to derive Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI). The SPI under climate change was used to evaluate the spatio-temporal variability of drought through principal component analysis at three different time scales which are 2015, 2045 and 2075. It was found that spatio-temporal variability is likely to modulate with climate change.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.1-22
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• 2017

'The worstest environment disaster', 'World's first biocide massacre', 'Home-based Sewol ferry disaster' are all phrases attached to the recent humidifier disinfectant disaster. In the spring of 2011, four of 8 pregnant women including 1 adult man passed away at a university hospital in Seoul due to breathing failure. Epidemiologic investigation conducted by the Korean CDC soon revealed the inhalation of humidifier disinfectant, which had been widely used in Korea during the winter, to be responsible for the disease. As well as lung fibrosis hardening of the lungs, other diseases including asthma, rhinitis, skin disease, liver disease, fetal disease or cancers have been researched for their relation with exposure to the products. By February 9, 2017, 5,342 cases had registered for health problems and 1,131 of them were already dead (20.8% mortality rate). Based on studies by government agencies and a telephone survey of the general population by Seoul National University and civic groups, around 20% of the general public of Korea has used these products. Since the market release of the first product by SK Chemical in 1994, over 7.1 million items from around 20 brands were sold up to 2011. Most of the products were manufactured by well-known large conglomerates such as SK, Lotte, Samsung, Shinsegye, LG, and GS, as well as some European companies including UK-based Reckitt Benckiser and TESCO, the German firm Henkel, the Danish firm KeTox, and an Irish company. Even though this disaster was unveiled in 2011 by the Korean government, the issue of the victims was neglected for over five years. In 2016, an unexpected but intensive investigation by prosecutors found that Reckitt Benckiser manipulated and concealed animal tests for its own brand and brought several university experts and company employees to court. The matter was an intense social issue in Korea from May to June with a surge in media coverage. The prosecutor's investigation and a nationwide boycott campaign organized by victims and environmental groups against Reckitt Benckiser, whose product had been used by more than 70% of victims, led to the producer's official apology and a compensation scheme. A legislative investigation organized after the April 2016 national election revealed the producers' faults and the government's responsibility, but failed to meet expectations. A special law for the victims passed the National Assembly in January 2017 and a punitive system together with a massive environmental epidemiology investigation are expected to be the only solutions for this tragedy. Sciences of medicine, toxicology and environmental health have provided decisive evidence so far, but for the remaining problems the perspectives of social sciences such as sociology and jurisprudence are highly necessary, similar to with the Minamata disease and Wonjin Rayon events. It may not be easy to follow this issue using unfamiliar terminology from medical and chemical science and the long, complicated history of the event. For these reasons the author has attempted to write this article in a question and answer format to render it easier to follow. The 17 questions are: Q1 What is humidifier disinfectant? Q2 What kind of health problems are caused by humidifier disinfectant? Q3 How many victims are there? Q4 What is the analysis of the 1,112 cases of death? Q5 What is the problem with the government's diagnostic criteria and the solution? Q6 Who made what brands? Q7 Has there been a recall? What is still on sale? Q8 Was safety not checked by any producers? Q9 What are the government's responsibilities? Q10 Is it true that these products were sold only in Korea? Q11 Why and how was it unveiled only in 2011 after 17 years of sales? Q12 What delayed the resolution of the victim issue? Q13 What is the background of the prosecutor's investigation in early 2016? Q14 Is it possible to report new victim cases without evidence of product purchase? Q15 What is happening with the victim issue? Q16 How does it compare with the cases of Minamata disease and Wonjin Rayon? Q17 Are there prevention measures and lessons?

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.39 no.3 s.117
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• pp.366-377
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• 2006

Environmental gradients and phytoplankton community were studied on a monthly basis, at 3 stations of Lake Yongdam, from April 2002 March 2004. During July to August, thermocline formed at the depth of about 10 m, but it was lowerd depth, in between 25${\sim}$30 m in October. Monthly variations of the epilimnetic (0${\sim}$5 m) TP concentrations at station 1, 2 and 3 were in the range of $5.1{\sim}36.1\;mg\;P\;{\cdot}\;m^{-3}$, $6.1{\sim}77.7\;mg\;P\;{\cdot}\;m^{-3}$ and $6.7{\sim}47.7\;mg\;P\;{\cdot}\;m^{-3}$ respectively; with higher concentrations at the upstream areas showing. Monthly average of the epilimnetic (0${\sim}$5 m) TN concentration at Station 1 was in the range of $0.88{\sim}1.73\;mg\;N\;{\cdot}\;L^{-1}$, and Station 3 was in the range of $0.94{\sim}2.77\;mg\;N\;{\cdot}\;L^{-1}$, which is higher if compared with the values of station 1. Transparency wa:s in the range of 0.8${\sim}$6.7 m, with lower values at upstream areas and higher at the downstream area. As for phytoplankton, during the winter season, diatoms had high appearance rate; during the spring season, Cyclotella comta, Aulacoseira ambigua f. spiralis, A. granulata and similar diatoms, during spring and summer Ankistrodesmus spiralis, Chodatella subsala, Crucigenia irregularis, Coelastrum cambricum, Scenedesmus ecornis v. ecornis.