KB Plants 210,000 Trees in Mongolia… Also Helps Improve Korean Air Quality

[‘그린스완’시대, 숲이 경쟁력이다]

Preventing rapid desertification through afforestation projects
Helping locals achieve economic independence by hiring local people

The appearance of the ‘KB Kookmin Clear Sky Forest No. 1’ created in Bayan Chogt, Tuv Province, Mongolia. The size of the No. 1 forest, created over a period of five years from 2019, is 70 ha. Provided by KB Kookmin Bank

170ha (hectares), a total of 210,000 trees.

This is the scale of the ‘KB Kookmin Clear Sky Forest’ to be created in Mongolia by February 2029. KB Kookmin Bank started a pilot project in 2018 in Bayannur, Bolgan Province, Mongolia, where it planted 10,000 trees, and completed the creation of the first forest of 70 ha in Bayan Chogt, Toub Province, over the course of five years from 2019. The area of ​​the second forest, which is being created starting this year, is also expected to reach 100 ha.

Mongolia is one of the countries that has been directly hit by climate change. According to KOTRA’s 2022 analysis, Mongolia’s average temperature has risen by 2.25 degrees over the past 80 years. This is 2.2 times the global average temperature increase rate. A significant portion of the country is also at risk of desertification. In 2021, Mongolian President Ukhna Khurelsukh announced that “the most effective way to prevent desertification is afforestation,” and that “we will carry out a campaign to plant 1 billion trees by 2030.”

Desertification in Mongolia is an issue that cannot be separated from the Korean Peninsula. The main sources of yellow dust that affects Korea are the Gobi Desert, the Inner Mongolia Plateau, the deserts of northeastern China, and the Loess Plateau. According to the National Institute of Meteorological Sciences, 54% of the yellow dust that affected Korea from 2002 to last year originated from the Gobi Desert and the Inner Mongolia Plateau and flowed directly into Korea. Including cases where it passed through other regions and moved to the Korean Peninsula, yellow dust originating from the Gobi Desert and the Inner Mongolia Plateau accounts for more than 80%. This is why we can expect positive effects on Korea’s air quality if forests are restored in Mongolia.

The second forest development site of the ‘KB National Clear Sky Forest’, Gorwangbolak in Bolgangju, is a place that actively engaged in afforestation projects, such as voluntarily planting 2,600 trees even though there was no budget for afforestation. The fact that various creatures live there was also evaluated as a suitable factor. Starting this year, a total of 100,000 trees will be planted here, 10,000 windbreak trees and 10,000 fruit trees each year.

KB Kookmin Bank decided to support the self-reliance of local residents along with the creation of a forest. The idea is to employ local residents to manage the plantation and grow seedlings and edible crops, thereby creating long-term income for the residents. Currently, the Mongolian government is conducting a large-scale planting campaign, so the demand for seedlings is increasing, so the plan is to produce and sell them to establish a foundation for economic self-reliance.

A KB Kookmin Bank official explained, “Since the first project, sustainable local communities have been formed, such as the launch of a local forest management cooperative in Mongolia,” and “A virtuous cycle will continue in which Mongolian forests will also contribute to improving Korea’s air quality.”

Reporter Kim Su-yeon [email protected]

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2024-09-04 17:01:29