Introduction

The natural environment provides the essential resources for human life, such as food, clothing, and shelter, and serves as the foundation for economic activities (Moon, 2015). However, human activities aimed at increasing convenience and improving living standards have led to resource depletion and expanded environmental destruction. This has become not only a national issue but also a global one (Park & Park, 2008). Globally, urban expansion and cropland displacement have been shown to contribute to both direct and indirect forest loss, and research has confirmed that human activities can accelerate the destruction of tropical forests (Davis et al., 2020; van Vliet, 2019). In Korea, to prevent indiscriminate development of natural environments, the use of Ecological and Natural Map (ENM) is mandated in the development and environmental planning processes. The ENM is a map that classifies Korea’s natural environment based on ecological value, naturalness, and landscape value (Korea Legislation Research Institute, 2024) (Fig. 1). The grades of the ENM are categorized into Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3, and separate management areas, based on the Natural Environment Conservation Act and guidelines for creating the ENM. Grade 1 areas are for the conservation and restoration of natural environments, Grade 2 areas for the conservation and minimization of damage due to use and development, and Grade 3 areas for areas where systematic development and use are possible (Korea Legislation Research Institute, 2024). These grades make it easy to understand the current state of the natural environment, and they are highly significant for land development. Especially, Grade 1 areas, which are of high ecological and scenic value and function as habitats for endangered wildlife, have very high conservation value, and development in these areas is strongly discouraged to prevent damage to the environment. This has led landowners and developers to view the classification as a regulatory and restrictive measure, and it has become a common cause for objections to the ENM (Ahn et al., 2015). When Grade 1 areas are included in a proposed development site, authorities such as the national government or local governments often recommend excluding these areas from the development plan or reject the proposal. Landowners and developers then request changes to the grade of the ENM to facilitate development (Jung et al., 2017). Since it was legislated in 1998 and first announced in 2007, the ENM has been continuously revised to reflect the latest natural environmental survey data. Requests for changes in the grades of the ENM have consistently occurred since 2007 (Ahn et al., 2015; Jung et al., 2017; Oh et al., 2023). If the grade does not change, repeated requests for grade modifications are made, or efforts are made to degrade the environment in order to induce a lower grade (Jung et al., 2017; Oh et al., 2023). According to the guidelines for creating the ENM, if a natural environment is unlawfully damaged, the grade is maintained for ten years. However, no penalties are imposed for non-illegal environmental damage. Therefore, after receiving approval for forest management activities, such as forest thinning, some request grade changes based on the altered natural environment.

Research on the ENM has included studies on the economic value of Grade 1 areas (Shin & Min, 2005), complaints regarding the ENM (Ahn et al., 2015; Jung et al., 2017; Oh et al., 2023), factors influencing grade downgrades (Choi et al., 2019; Kang et al., 2023), and the status of Grade 1 areas in the ENM (Yoon et al., 2024). Additionally, while some studies have explored the impact of artificial damage on the ENM grades (Choi et al., 2019), this study have only compared data before and after the regular assessments, and no studies have examined the impact of forest management on objections. This study aims to investigate the influence of forest management on objections by analyzing cases of objections filed after forest management activities.

Materials and Methods

We analyzed objections cases submitted to the National Institute of Ecology from 2014 to 2024. All submissions—including approved, withdrawn, and rejected cases—were considered. Specific analyses included:

Objections trends: To examine the cases of objections filed after forest management, the number of objections received over the past 10 years and the number of those related to forest management were reviewed. The distribution of all objection areas and the areas where forest management was identified were analyzed. The analysis of objections cases included all submissions, including those processed normally, withdrawn, or rejected.

Grade changes: Comparison of ENM grades before and after forest management in objection areas using ArcGIS-based spatial analysis (ArcGIS 10.8.; ESRI, Redlands, CA, USA). However, objections regarding cancellation, rejection, and the designation or removal of separate management zones were not included in the area comparison analysis, as they are unrelated to changes in grade.

Results

Discussion

The ENM is used in environmental policies of the government and local authorities, as well as in environmental impact assessments for land development (Korea Legislation Research Institute, 2024). Specifically, administrative agencies use the ENM grades as a criterion for granting development permits, effectively making the grades a form of regulation. As a result, objections to the ENM are primarily filed for the purpose of land development (Ahn et al., 2015; Jung et al., 2017; Oh et al., 2023).

According to the results of this study, the number of objections to the ENM has gradually decreased, but objections after forest management practices have remained consistent. These cases accounted for 18.58% of the total objections, and forest management accounted for 43.21% of the increase in Grade 3 areas, indicating that forest management has a significant impact on the increase in Grade 3 areas. Regionally, a relatively high number of objections following forest management were observed in Gangwon Special Self-governing Province, which has a high proportion of Grade 1 distribution, as well as in Gyeonggi-do and Gyeongsangnam-do, where land development pressure is high (Table 2).

The Forest Resources Development and Management Act defines forest management as a project aimed at maintaining, developing, or restoring the functions of forests (Korea Law Information Center, 2023). Forest resource management is considered a critical undertaking to create ecologically stable and disaster-resistant economic forests (Jang et al., 2008; Woo et al., 2012).

However, in cases where the desired grade changes are not achieved through objections to the ENM, there have been instances where objections are filed again after forest management, such as logging (Oh et al., 2023). The primary goal of forest management is to promote healthy forest ecosystems, and ENM grades are not considered when implementing such activities. According to the Natural Environment Conservation Act, the ENM is intended to be used in development planning where environmental degradation is anticipated. Therefore, forest management does not fall within the scope of ENM applications. However, there have been confirmed attempts to exploit this legal loophole to intentionally lower ENM grades. The following process was identified through several cases (National Institute of Ecology, 2020; 2023) (Figs. 2, 3): First, forest management is carried out after obtaining approval for forest management. Second, objections to the ENM are filed to attempt a grade change. Third, once the grade change is completed, development projects, such as environmental impact assessments, are initiated. In particular, if the development area is below the minimum threshold for environmental impact assessment (e.g., an area of 30,000 m² or less), the downgrade of the ENM rating due to forest management may lead directly to development without undergoing an environmental impact assessment review. It appears that forest management is being used as a means to induce grade downgrades in the ENM.

Conclusion

Due to the identified issue of ENM grade downgrading caused by forest management projects, the Ministry of Environment amended relevant legislation in September 2024 (Korea Law Information Center, 2024). In areas where forest management has been implemented, ENM grade will now be based on pre-management survey data, without reflecting new changes in the natural environment for a period of five years. However, under the current grading criteria of the ENM, vegetation older than 30 years, with high naturalness, is classified as Grade 1 (Korea Law Information Center, 2024). It is judged that five years is insufficient time for forests disturbed by forest management to recover to their previous state. An analysis of future objection cases is necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of the recent legal amendments, and in-depth research is required to ensure that the forest management and ENM system are operated in alignment with their original objectives.