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April 20, 2009
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| Nearly 200 elementary school students tromped through an urban forest in western Daejeon last week as part of a retreat dubbed a “nature learning experience.” The field trip would’ve been far different had they gone a year ago, when the 45,000-square-meter (484,376- square-foot) site was nothing more than a vast expanse of plains. The city opened the forest to the public last Thursday after spending 1.7 billion won ($1.3 million) planting 68,000 trees, including 31 different varieties. The effort is part of the local government’s long-term project to plant 30 million trees across the city, which started in 2007. Under the 600 billion won project, the city will plant 2 million trees each year until 2020. So far, 4.1 million trees have been planted in Daejeon, which is about 170 kilometers south of Seoul. Korea is now the 10th-biggest contributor to an effort spearheaded by the United Nations Environment Programme to plant 7 billion trees between 2006 and 2009. Kapcheon, a delta in front of the Yuseong District Office, also expected to complete a large urban forest project by July. The 57,000-square-meter site essentially was an unused eyesore. The city government is planting roughly 100,000 trees and installing an artificial lake, fountains, a plaza, a promenade, sports facilities and a concert hall. “Urban forests will boost Daejeon residents’ quality of life, enabling them to walk around or do simple exercises,” said Son Seong-do, head of the city’s environment department. There’s an added benefit, as well. Since planting around 600,000 trees in the median strips on 17 roadways, traffic accidents have reduced by more than 60 percent, according to the government. The city is encouraging its citizens to take part, hosting tree-planting events at wedding anniversaries and reaching out to teachers and parents. These efforts have led to 1 million new trees. By Seo Ji-eun [spring@joongang.co.kr] |
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