It is very important to conserve forests and rivers in the DPRK, where mountains cover most of its territory, which has many rivers and streams and which is bounded by sea on three sides.

The reality, in which drought and high temperature have repeated and typhoons and floods have hit the country in succession in recent years, throws into relief the importance of afforestation and water conservation.

The importance was emphasized at major meetings of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea, and measures have been taken to work out a national long-term plan and conserve forests and rivers in a scientific way.

Provinces, cities and counties put forward this undertaking as an important task and have pushed the work persistently and stubbornly by relying on the strength of the masses.

At present, afforestation and forest conservation progresses apace throughout the country.

It is the view of everyone and lesson drawn by them that river improvement is useless and the damage from flood cannot be prevented without creating and managing forests.

Though calamities of flood and typhoon hit the country last year, Thaechon and Mundok counties and some other areas, which have conducted the work well, suffered little damage.

Practice shows that it is very effective to take preventive measures, rather than dealing with natural damage after suffering it.

True to the intention of the WPK to turn all mountains into green forests, the forest restoration campaign was stepped up on a large scale and stubbornly in the past and much experience and lesson were accumulated in that course.

The success will be expanded when we direct big efforts constantly to afforestation and forest conservation while sharing successes and experience and introducing advanced technology.

It is needed to manage rivers and streams well and push ahead with coastal construction in a far-sighted and bold way.

We need to build banks and embankments, dig up riverbeds, straighten and divert waterways, rearrange the mouth of rivers and protect river structures in a qualitative way to suit the characteristics of specific areas.

In the past, many cities and counties including Unsan and Kilju counties pushed river improvement projects in succession according to phased plans to protect farmland and acquire many areas of new land.

At present, it is very important to raise the scientific level in afforestation and water conservation.

All undertakings relating to water conservation should be carried out in a scientific way, such as the building of buffer positions based on accurate assessment of water-regulating capacity of rivers and the completion of the irrigation control system. National measures have been taken and IT-levels improved to this end.

A nationwide and all-people campaign should be waged for afforestation and water conservation as it is a gigantic undertaking requiring huge labour, funds and time and an important matter for the people’s lives and property, the prosperity of the country and younger generations.