Ministry of Environment has established a master plan on National Ecology Research, as an attempt to understand and manage the impacts of climate change and environmental pollution on the natural environment. Through the plan, the ministry reserves to perform a decade-long (03 ~ 2012) monitoring of the fifty six ecological territories that represent different climate conditions (subtropical, temperate, and subarctic zones) in lands, fresh water regions, and coasts. Furthermore, the plan outlines a research on the agricultural and ecological impacts inflicted by sixteen kinds of non-indigenous species and harmful birds, such as red-eared turtle and magpie.

According to a recent research, pine trees, predominant tree species in Korea, may disappear after hundred years as Korea's climate transforms to a subtropical climate; agricultural damages, inflicted by harmful birds and an outbreak of non-indigenous insects, are expected to increase; and indigenous fish are suffering from threats by non-indigenous species such as red eared turtles. Moreover, from the late 90's, efflorescence* has been appearing on rocks in east-south estuaries, causing 30~40% diminution of sea slugs and sea mussels, and disappearances of marine plants. Realizing the seriousness of damages, the Ministry of Environment has come to prepare the long-term plan in an effort to further support the scientific research mechanisms in finding precise causes and effective countermeasures of ecology disturbance phenomenon.
*efflorescence: a growth of salt crystals on rock surfaces produced by evaporation of salt-laden water, causing deaths of other living organisms.