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2026 Vol.53, Issue 1 Preview Page

Plant & Forest

Analysis of damage characteristics and influencing factors of forest road maintenance
Seong Man Kim12†
,
Ji-Young Son3†
,
Hyeongkeun Kweon4
,
Ye Jun Choe2
,
Joon-Woo Lee2*
,
Sung-Min Choi5*
1Secretariat, Korea Association of Forest Enviro-conservation Technology, Cheongju 28165, Korea
2Department of Forest Resources, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 34134, Korea
3Division of Research Technical Research Institute, Korea Association of Forest Enviro-conservation Technology, Cheongju 28165, Korea
4Department of Crops and Forestry, Korea National University of Agriculture and Fisheries, Jeonju 54874, Korea
5Forest Engineering Laboratory, Korea Forest Engineer Institute, Daejeon 35236, Korea
*Corresponding Author
†These authors equally contributed to this study as first author.
1 March 2026. pp. 85-97
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Abstract

This study analyzed 237 cases of forest road facility damage caused by natural disasters in South Korea between 2013 and 2023, aiming to quantify damage types and causes, and to examine their relationships with topographic, geological, and meteorological factors. The study sites comprised damage areas with a restoration cost exceeding 500 million KRW, and data sources included Google Earth imagery, Korea Meteorological Administration automatic weather system (AWS) rainfall data, digital elevation model (DEM), and forest soil maps. The results showed that damage was concentrated on embankment slopes (24.1%) and upper valley sections (22.4%), with 72.6% occurring on slopes steeper than 30°. Most damaged sites were composed of sandy soils (60.3%) with shallow soil depths (< 30 cm; 95.4%), and 65.9% were located on east-, south-, or southeast-facing slopes. Higher cumulative rainfall over 14 days prior to the event and higher maximum hourly rainfall were associated with increased damage occurrence. Damage occurred predominantly within 5 years of road construction (57.0%) and within 3 years after timber harvesting (79.1%). Routes of layout Types 1 (50.2%) and 2 (44.3%) showed higher damage rates, particularly when repeatedly crossing watercourses or following the lower slopes. Based on these findings, the study proposes climate-responsive design standards, reinforcement of slope protection facilities, and the establishment of rainfall-based monitoring systems for effective disaster prevention and maintenance of forest roads.

Keywords
forest roads
natural disaster damage
rainfall-based monitoring
slope stability
References
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Information
  • Publisher :Institute of Agricultural Science, Chungnam National University
  • Publisher(Ko) :충남대학교 농업과학연구소
  • Journal Title :Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
  • Journal Title(Ko) :농업과학연구
  • Volume : 53
  • No :1
  • Pages :85-97
  • Received Date : 2025-12-22
  • Revised Date : 2026-02-20
  • Accepted Date : 2026-02-27
  • DOI :https://doi.org/10.7744/kjoas.530108
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