Gapyeong-gun completed payment of 300 million won in forestry and forestry public benefit direct payments. Gapyeong-gun (Governor Seo Tae-won) announced on December 31 that it had paid 300 million won in forestry and forestry public interest direct payments to all 72 foresters in 2024.
The forestry and forestry public interest direct payment system is a system that provides direct payments to foresters who meet certain qualifications in order to stabilize the income of foresters and promote the public interest function of forests in accordance with the Forestry Direct Payment Act.
The direct payment was divided into △ small-time household direct payment (2 people, approximately 2 million won), △ area direct payment (56 people, approximately 240 million won), and △ forestry industry direct payment (14 people, approximately 60 million won). Depending on qualification requirements, payments are made differentially, taking into account cultivation area and activity details. In particular, the small-income direct payment is targeted at small-scale foresters with a production area of 0.1ha to 0.5ha, and is paid within 1.3 million won per household if the qualification requirements are met. Other foresters receive direct payment at a unit price based on area standards.
A military official said, “We hope that this public interest direct payment will contribute to stabilizing the income of foresters and strengthening the public interest function of forests,” and added, “We will thoroughly promote the project so that all foresters can benefit in 2025.”
Meanwhile, Gapyeong-gun announced on December 31 that it had achieved the effect of ‘killing three birds with one stone’, including reducing fine dust, preventing forest fires, and utilizing compost by processing about 2,500 tons of agricultural by-products in 2024.
This farming by-product treatment project was promoted with a budget of approximately 100 million won to reduce fine dust generation and prevent forest fires by treating twigs and by-products generated during the farming process. The processing volume was calculated to be about 2,500 tons, including 1,318 tons of apples, 1,018 tons of grapes, and 183 tons of other by-products such as perilla seeds and red pepper stalks. Gapyeong-gun completed 280 by-product processing operations on 142ha of agricultural land from February to December.
The county announced that through this agricultural by-product processing support project, it has greatly contributed to the use of compost and reducing the risk of fine dust and forest fires by △ revitalizing the job economy in the region △ prioritizing treatment of farmland for elderly farmers △ intensively supporting farmland near mountainous areas.
Gapyeong-gun plans to invest approximately 100 million won in project expenses in 2025 to support the processing of agricultural by-products.
A county official said, “Agricultural by-products can be a major cause of fine dust and forest fires.” He added, “The county encourages the active participation of farmers in processing agricultural by-products and expands resource recycling by spreading shredded material that can be used as compost on farmland.” “I will do it,” he said.
Gapyeong-gun plans to continue to pursue various projects to protect the environment and support agriculture and do its best to improve the quality of life for residents.
Economy Queen Reporter Choi Hana
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