The South Jeollanam Prvovince (Jeollanam) introduced the nation’s first provincially important agricultural heritage systems on 23 December to preserve the endangered traditional agricultural and fisheries natural resources and use them to revitalize the local economy.

The province designated seven agricultural resources including Gurye’s cornelian cherry trees beds as its first important agricultural heritages.

Others include Boseong green tea farm, Damyang bamboo grove, Sinan foreshore salt ponds, Hwasun Darangyi rice field, Muan white lotus flower beds and Yeonggwang salt ponds.

Nationally important agricultural heritages currently include Cheongsando’s flat stone rice field and Jeju’s stone wall farms.

Important agricultural heritages are the traditional agricultural and fisheries natural resources that have been preserved for a long time and reflect the evolution of humankind, the diversity of its knowledge, and its profound relationship with nature.

Jeollanam considered the tradition, local characteristics, value, participations of local residents and regional revitalization after designation as the criteria for designations.

The province plans to enhance the value of the heritages and apply for the designation as the nationally important agricultural heritages and globally important agricultural heritages in the future.

It also seeks to discover the variety of agricultural and fisheries heritages to use them as the foundation of the local tourism industry.

A total of KRW 1.5 billion will be invested for three years if a traditional agricultural resource is designated as the important agricultural heritage.