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The Ministry of Environment announced on Sunday, ¡°309 native species have been designated biological resources subject to export permission¡± to prevent their commercial exploitation following reckless exports. The designation affects 99 species of plants, 30 fish species, and 180 species of insects.
Specimens of designated species are also under export ban, not to mention the eggs, seeds or roots in their live forms. Those found to have violated the ruling could be sentenced to two years of imprisonment or fined up to 10- million won (approximately US$ 10,000). Even when taking those export-prohibited species out of the country for the special purposes of exhibition or research, government approval should first be attained.
The government¡¯s move to safeguard native flora and fauna is attributable to reckless previous exports, whereby Korean biological resources were improved and then traded as species native to countries other than Korea in international markets, or imported back to Korea.
One such case is that of the syringa patula from North Korea, from which an American floriculturist took seeds to the U.S. in 1947 to improve and rename it as Miss Kim lilac, a Korean fir used as a Christmas tree. The lily species day lily and hanson lily underwent similar fates.
The Ministry also added that ¡°to protect indigenous biological resources, the export ban will be expanded to cover about 3,000 species by 2014.¡± Regarding designation, priority will be given to endangered species, and those with high economic potential as food or for decorative or medicinal purposes. The current number of species requiring government approval for export stands at 822, including the newly-designated 309 species.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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