Gwangjin-gu has launched an intensive management campaign for street trees and green zones to minimize tree damage from prolonged heat waves and drought and restore a healthy urban growing environment, the district said.
According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, Seoul's cumulative rainfall from March through July this year reached 668.9 millimeters — only 84 percent of the three-year average for the same period. Combined with the ongoing heat wave, the shortfall has raised concerns about moisture deficits and deteriorating growth conditions for urban trees.
In response, the district is rolling out a field-focused tree protection program that includes irrigation using water trucks, installation of water bags, application of nail fertilizers, and soil washing combined with nutrient treatment.
The program covers the district's major green spaces: 6,198 street trees along 33 routes including Cheonho-daero, approximately 10 kilometers of strip greenbelts along eight routes, 23 green zones including the Jungnangcheon greenbelt and attraction gardens, and 37 neighborhood plazas and rest areas.
The district will operate a dedicated irrigation response team until the drought eases, maintaining a rapid-deployment system that accounts for weather conditions and tree health. Eight district-owned water trucks will be supplemented by a rented 16-ton truck to carry out intensive watering tailored to each site's conditions.
Trees in poor condition will receive water bags to ensure a steady supply of moisture over time. Solid nail fertilizers will also be driven directly into the soil to deliver the nutrients trees need and support their recovery.
Strip greenbelts and green zones will also receive sustained irrigation to flush calcium chloride that has accumulated in the soil — a process known as soil washing. Soil nutrients will be applied alongside this to reduce salt damage and create stable growing conditions for the trees.
The district said it will continue monitoring weather conditions and tree health, maintaining irrigation and on-site management going forward.
"With the heat wave and drought persisting, the stress on urban trees and green spaces is mounting, and this is a time when careful management is essential," Gwangjin-gu District Mayor Kim Kyung-ho said. "We will do our utmost to keep our precious green spaces healthy through swift, field-centered irrigation and systematic tree care, so that residents can enjoy a comfortable green environment."
seouldream01@heraldcorp.com
