CRI

 [ABSTRACT]

This study was conducted to investigate and review the current state of the natural environment in rural areas of Chungbuk Province and to suggest policy directions for creating environmentally attractive rural areas. Since the 1980s, Korea's rural areas have been on the verge of extinction due to a declining population, and the local economy is suffering from a backwardness. Recently, the number of people returning to rural areas to farm or live in the countryside has been increasing, but rural areas are not ready to accept them. According to the 2022 Ministry of Agriculture survey, the reason for returning to farming was the natural environment at 32.4%, followed by the vision and development potential of agriculture at 21.0%, and succession of the family business at 20.0%. The reason for returning to rural areas was employment outside of agriculture at 22.6%, followed by the natural environment at 14.1% and emotional freedom at 13.2%. While people who return to farming and rural areas have high expectations for the natural environment of rural areas, the actual natural environment of rural areas is gradually deteriorating and losing its rural character of the past. Environmental pollution discharge facilities are being pushed out of cities and relocated to rural areas, and nonpoint pollution sources in rural areas are gradually increasing. The aging of rural areas is making it more difficult to manage the natural environment of rural areas, such as through eco-friendly agriculture. The research results show that the following are directions for improving the management of the natural environment in rural areas: first, transition from a government-led environmental management system to a resident-led environmental management system; second, promotion of policies to support and utilize the labor force returning to farming and rural areas; third, raising awareness of environmental protection through the activation of village communities; fourth, establishment and support of a resource circulation system for livestock waste, a major source of non-point pollution; and lastly, formation and activation of environmental governance as an intermediate organization between the administration and residents.