A Study on the Management Plan of Hongneung Forest Based on Visitor Monitoring

In 1922, Hongneung forest was established to support the study of Korean forestry. Nowadays the forest also plays a role as urban forest which provides a green space for local people. This paper proposes the better management plan of Hongneung forest based on visitor monitoring. On-site surveys with a structured questionnaire were carried out from August to November in 2014 and total 750 data were analyzed. The survey results are as follows: 1) Visitors were inclusive of all age groups and most of them lived nearby Hongneung forest, 2) Visitors used the forest mainly for recreational purposes and recognized the forest as `Green space` rather than `experimental forest`, 3) Visitors had great satisfaction from the forest visit and raised the necessity of more environment education and promotion of the program. Based on the results, the following solutions have been suggested: 1) Environment education will help visitors to raise awareness on the importance of Hongneung forest which plays a role as both experimental and urban forest, 2) Systematic visitor monitoring can contribute to efficient visitor management and administration of the areas. In conclusion, it is necessary to establish a visitor management system that enable to achieve a harmonization between nature conservation and recreational demands as well as to improve management of natural resource and service.