[사회]Dispute over the construction of mountain trains in the habitat of the crescent-shaped bears at Brothers Peak in Jirisan

[앵커]

There is controversy over the plan to install tourist facilities such as mountain trains and monorails on the southern ridge of Mount Jirisan.

This is because the place has been identified as a habitat for black bears.

YTN’s Data Journalism Team analyzed the construction site and the location where the bear appeared in detail.

Reporter Ham Hyeong-gun.

[기자]

This is a conceptual diagram submitted by Hadong-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do to create a tourist district by making mountain trains on the ridge of Mount Jirisan.

It is a project to build monorails and cable cars, as well as mountain trains connecting Brothers Peak from Cheonghak-dong, with 165 billion won, including a private investment of 150 billion won.

The area of ​​Hyeongseongbong Peak on the southern ridge of Mount Jirisan is not only beautiful, but also a place where oak colonies are distributed.

This is the place where bears have constantly appeared in favorable conditions as a habitat for the endangered crescent black bear, which the Ministry of the Environment has been carrying out restoration projects.

The location of the vandal bear over the past 10 years, identified as a radio receiver, was compared to the expected construction section of the mountain train and displayed on a map.

Crescent-shaped black bears have consistently appeared near Brotherhood Peak for more than 10 years, and have been more frequent and dense as of 2018.

If you look at all the locations of the crescent-shaped bears caught from 2010 to September this year, you can see that they were caught in all directions throughout the Brotherhood area, including the commercial mountain train section.

[장이권 / 이화여대 에코과학부 교수 : (형제봉 일원은) 곰들이 그 지역을 단순히 스쳐 지나가는 것이 아니고 실제로 살고 있어요.먹고, 이웃과 교류하고, 자기 영역을 유지하면서 살고 있는 일종의 삶의 터전이라고 볼 수가 있습니다.]

It is analyzed that the number of crescent bears that inhabit near the Brotherhood during the last four years is about 4-5.

In particular, the team of Professor Jang Lee Kwon from Ewha Womans University and the National Park Service Rehabilitation Center analyzed the range of activities of the Jirisan crescent bear.

The habitat of a bear is much larger than the planned site for mountain trains.

Although there is a high possibility that the tourist attraction creation project will alter the environment of the crescent bear habitat, Hadong-gun only expressed his position that he will continue with the project without providing concrete alternatives.

[하승호 / 하동군청 관광진흥과 계장 : 우리가 곰이 있다 해서 사업을 포기할 것도 아니고요. 곰과 상생할 수 있는 방안을 마련해서 곰의 피해가 최소화되도록 그렇게 사업을 하도록 하겠습니다.]

Although the pros and cons are faced between local residents, neither the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, which selected this project as a model of social commitment and initiated the mediation, nor the Ministry of the Environment, which is responsible for the restoration project , have not been able to draw a clear conclusion.

[강은미 / 국회의원, 정의당 원내대표 : 환경부가 국가의 세금을 들여 반달가슴곰을 복원한 주요 서식처에 기재부가 산악철도를 건설한다는 게 이율배반적인 것이고요 환경부는 이 사업과 관련해서는 이 장소에서는 안된다는 입장을 분명히 밝혀야 한다고 봅니다.]

The noise and conflict surrounding the Brotherhood Mountain Train Development Project, which began without properly understanding the state of the crescent-shaped bear habitat and its significance, raises fundamental questions about whether our society is ready to coexist. with nature.

YTN Hyung-Gun Ham[[email protected]]it is.

[저작권자(c) YTN & YTN plus 무단전재 및 재배포 금지]