Rice fields along the DMZ
www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/10/7/708#:~:text=As%20established%....
Rice production in South Korea is important for the food supply in the country, with rice being a common part of the Korean diet. In 2009, South Korea produced 3,899,036 metric tonnes (4,297,951 tons) of rice. Camp Casey sits in between the South Korean capital of Seoul and the Demilitarized Zone.
South Korean farmers see the area adjecent to the DMZ as valuable soil, frequently planting crops despite warnings to stay away, a typical example of how South Korea's population has encroached on once-rural training areas.
In 1996 and 1998, unexploded ordnance killed two Korean civilians who had entered the Story range to look for scrap metal. Unexploded munitions and live-fire exercises make the area dangerous. Unexploded ordnance in that area presents a very real and significant danger to anyone walking in the impact area. This danger is greatly amplified if someone is planting or harvesting crops.
The South Korean Army supervises farming. Farmers must have a pass to cross any of the three bridges, guarded by South Korean soldiers, leading to the range. Normally, range control officials and Army explosive ordnance disposal teams would clear munitions from the impact area annually. But the impact area at Story Range is swampy, and teams can only look for duds on the surface. Additionally, the entire area just south of the DMZ is rife with mines. Many are newer mines laid by the South Korean Army as part of the DMZ defense. But there are unmarked mine fields, and monsoon rains shift mines around. Korean contractors and 8th Army personnel have uncovered about 30 mines while putting in fence posts.
Rice fields along the DMZ
www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/10/7/708#:~:text=As%20established%....
Rice production in South Korea is important for the food supply in the country, with rice being a common part of the Korean diet. In 2009, South Korea produced 3,899,036 metric tonnes (4,297,951 tons) of rice. Camp Casey sits in between the South Korean capital of Seoul and the Demilitarized Zone.
South Korean farmers see the area adjecent to the DMZ as valuable soil, frequently planting crops despite warnings to stay away, a typical example of how South Korea's population has encroached on once-rural training areas.
In 1996 and 1998, unexploded ordnance killed two Korean civilians who had entered the Story range to look for scrap metal. Unexploded munitions and live-fire exercises make the area dangerous. Unexploded ordnance in that area presents a very real and significant danger to anyone walking in the impact area. This danger is greatly amplified if someone is planting or harvesting crops.
The South Korean Army supervises farming. Farmers must have a pass to cross any of the three bridges, guarded by South Korean soldiers, leading to the range. Normally, range control officials and Army explosive ordnance disposal teams would clear munitions from the impact area annually. But the impact area at Story Range is swampy, and teams can only look for duds on the surface. Additionally, the entire area just south of the DMZ is rife with mines. Many are newer mines laid by the South Korean Army as part of the DMZ defense. But there are unmarked mine fields, and monsoon rains shift mines around. Korean contractors and 8th Army personnel have uncovered about 30 mines while putting in fence posts.