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Maritime Environment in Korea
Muddy Shore Lands of Korea
The seas of Korea are classified into economic waters, seaweed
zones and tidal flats. They extend 42.8 million hectares, 2.1 million ha and
280,000ha, respectively. The value of these resources totals 99 trillion
Won a year -61 trillion Won in the use of economic waters, 36 trillion won in
seaweed zones and 2 trillion Won in tidal flats. The combined value accounted
for 27 percent of the Gross Domestic Product in 1996.
The coastline of Korea extends 2,400km or 24.9km for every
1,000 square kilometers of land, showing that Korea has relatively favorable
maritime conditions. As many river estuaries are located along the west and east
coasts, large muddy shorelands have been formed along the coastal shore areas.
In particular, extensive muddy shorelands exist along the west coast thanks to a
high tidal difference.
The muddy shorelands of Korea total 239,000ha, of which
198,000ha or 83 percent of the total are located along west coast. The Kyonggi-do
area, including Inch'eon, boasts about 35 percent of
the total acreage of muddy shorelands. As they are within easy access from Seoul
and other large cities, demand for their reclamation is expected to surge in the
future.
The tidal flats reclaimed from 1910 through 1994 extended
100,000ha in 1,795 districts. Up until the 1990s, the areas of per-district
reclaimed flats were rather small, less than 15ha. Thereafter, the unit
average size has increased to 83ha in the 1970s and to 1,230ha
since the early 1990s. The tidal flats reclaimable or reclaimed in the past 20
years totaled 1,300,000ha, of which muddy shorelands reached 630,000ha.
Of the developable flats, those that remain undeveloped extend 620,000ha,
almost half of the total. Reclaimable shore areas total 480,000ha, or 78
percent of the total. It is thus expected that muddy shorelands will be briskly
developed in the future. However, the declining area of muddy shorelands due to
reclamation prompted by rapid industrial and economic growth, will have to be
reevaluated in consideration of the social and economic importance of muddy
shoreland resources.
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Economic Value of Muddy Shore Lands
In Korea, muddy shorelands represent a source of considerable
importance to the people. Most muddy shorelands are significant economic,
environmental and recreational resources as they provide not only good outlets
for fishing, but also perform the role of filtering pollutants.
A survey made recently of fishery goods production in the four
muddy shore areas of Hongbo, Kunjang, Taebudo and Yongjongdo
districts based on licensed fisheries, showed that Yongjongdo
had the highest productivity, with 9,540,000 won per hectare. The average
productivity in the four districts stood at 9,030,000 Won.
As for the value of muddy shore areas as fish haunts, the Yongjongdo
district topped the list with 7,780,000 won per hectare. The average value of
the Yongjongdo and Hongbo areas amounted 6,880,000
won.
The value of the pollutants filtration function of the four
districts is estimated to be 3,840,000 won per hectare. The figure was obtained
by converting the value of muddy shorelands' function of waste water
assimilation into average sewage treatment expenses. The value of the
recreational function of muddy shorelands amounted to 400,000 won per hectare.
Therefore, the economic gain coming from the preservation of muddy shorelands is
estimated at about 20,140,000 won per hectare.
The function of maritime environments covers not only
commercial fishery but also the roles of fish haunts and biological diversity.
Thus, the resources and service obtainable from muddy shorelands are linked to
the well-being of the public. The value of these functions is expected to grow
more significant in the days to come.
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Information provided by the
Korean Embassy
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