Pine wilt is back. Researchers say an additional 58,000 trees have succumbed to the lethal infestation. Mike Laidman has more.
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Nohyeong-dong, Jeju City

In this forest in Nohyeong-dong(노형동), Jeju City, dead pine trees can be seen everywhere. The once-green forest is turning brown.


Forestry officials have revealed that between May and August this year, an additional 58,000 pine trees became infested with pine wilt disease.


The extensive operations that were to eliminate all dead trees from a previous outbreak came to a halt at the end of April with around 30 thousand trees remaining. But during the five months since, pine wilt has started to spread rapidly once again.

A whopping 48 billion won and 58 thousand people went into the previous eradication effort.

SYNC
Kim Woo-nam / National Assembly lawmaker
All 544,000 infested trees should have have been cut down by the end of April, but 30,000 had yet to be removed at the end of the month.
<씽크:김우남/국회의원>
"4월까지 모두 잘라내야 재선충 확산을 막을 수 있었는데 (2차방제때) 총 54만 4천 그루의 고사목 중 약 3만 그루는 지난 4월까지 제거하지 못했습니다."

Jeju City had planned to use the remaining 30,000 dead pine trees to attract the pine sawyer beetles that transmit the disease. The idea was to keep the infection localized, but it has now spread out of control.

[INTERVIEW]
Seo Seung-wan / Jeju Forest Conservation Unit
We plan to eliminate all infested trees by April 2016. That includes the 29,000-something trees that weren’t cut previously, plus the new cases.
<인터뷰:서승완/道 산림보존 담당>
"전에 제거하지 못한 고사목 2만 9천여 그루와 합쳐서 다음달부터 방제작업에 들어가서 내년 4월까지 전량 제거할 계획입니다."

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Ko Moon-su

Jeju City plans to spend another 37 billion won in this latest eradication effort which will see about 200,000 pine trees cut and removed.

[reporter]
Mike Laidman

But pundits worry that at the current pace the disease has been spreading, another 100,000 trees could end up sick, meaning an even larger investment, both in money and manpower, to completely rid Jeju’s forests of pine wilt.

Mike Laidman, KCTV