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2026 Vol.59, Issue 9 Preview Page
An analysis of historical riparian vegetation regime shifts in Korea: Drivers, processes, and implications of the white-to-green river transition

한국의 역사적인 수변식생레짐 변화 현상의 해석: 백색-녹색 하천 천이의 동인, 과정 및 시사점

Hyoseop Wooa*
,
Sung-Uk Choib
우 효섭a*
,
최 성욱b
aVisiting Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea
bProfessor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea
a연세대학교 건설환경공학과 객원교수
b연세대학교 건설환경공학과 교수
*Corresponding Author
30 September 2026. pp. 1017-1031
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Abstract

This study investigates the timing, driving mechanisms, and river responses associated with the white-to-green river transition observed in alluvial sandy rivers in Korea. Historically, rivers on the Korean Peninsula were predominantly characterized as “white rivers,” with exposed sand and gravel bars under high disturbance regimes. In recent decades, however, these systems have undergone a marked transition toward “green rivers,” where herbaceous and woody vegetation has expanded across channel bars, banks, and floodplains. This transformation has dual implications: it reduces channel conveyance capacity and increases flood risk from an engineering perspective, while simultaneously enhancing ecological functions such as biodiversity and habitat complexity. Based on an integrated analysis of historical documents, aerial imagery, and contemporary research, the results indicate that favorable conditions for vegetation recruitment on the sand bars emerged in the late 1970s. These changes were primarily driven by reduced sediment supply associated with watershed reforestation and diminished flood disturbances following the construction of multipurpose dams. Widespread vegetation establishment and expansion became evident from the early 1990s. In sand-bed rivers, which are common in Korea, dam-induced attenuation of flow variation and flood disturbance played a dominant role in accelerating vegetation encroachment. Meanwhile, unregulated rivers appear to maintain seasonal hydroclimatic variability, creating intermittent “windows of opportunity” for vegetation recruitment. These findings demonstrate that riparian vegetation change is not merely an ecological response but a bio-morphological process coupled with flow, sediment, and vegetation. Under future climate change scenarios, shifts in the magnitude and frequency of extreme hydrological events are expected to significantly alter riparian vegetation regimes. This underscores the need for adaptive, long-term river management strategies that explicitly incorporate vegetation-flow-sediment feedbacks.

Keywords
Riparian vegetation regime
Hydro-morphodynamics
Dam regulation
Sediment supply
Sand-bed rivers
Vegetation encroachment
White-to-green river transition

본 연구는 국내 충적하천에서 관찰되는 ‘백색하천에서 녹색하천으로의 천이(white-to-green river transition)’ 현상의 시기, 구동요인 및 하천반응 특성을 규명하는 것을 목적으로 한다. 과거 한반도의 하천은 모래, 자갈이 노출된 교란 상태의 백색하천이 지배적이었으나, 최근에는 강턱, 사주 및 홍수터에 초본 및 목본 식생이 확장된 녹색하천으로 전환되고 있다. 이러한 변화는 하도 통수능 저하 및 홍수위험 증가라는 공학적 문제를 야기하는 동시에, 생물다양성 증진과 서식처 다양성 확보라는 생태적 기능을 수반하는 이중적 특성을 가진다. 역사기록, 항공사진 및 최근 연구성과를 종합적으로 분석한 결과, 1970년대 후반 유역 산림녹화에 따른 토사공급 감소와 다목적댐 건설에 따른 홍수교란 완화로 식생 이입·활착에 유리한 조건이 형성되기 시작한 것으로 나타났다. 이후 1990년대 초부터 식생의 본격적인 이입 및 확장이 진행된 것으로 판단된다. 국내에 흔한 모래하천은 댐에 의한 유량 변동성 감소와 홍수교란 약화가 식생 확장을 지배하는 주요 요인으로 작용하는 것으로 나타났다. 비조절하천에서도 계절적 강우-유출 변동성이 ‘기회의 창’을 형성하여 식생 이입을 간헐적으로 촉진하는 것으로 해석된다. 이러한 결과는 하천식생 변화가 단순한 생태적 현상이 아니라 흐름-유사-지형-식생 간 상호작용에 의해 지배되는 통합적 생물지형학적 과정임을 보여준다. 향후 기후변화에 따른 극한 수문사상의 변화는 수변식생레짐에 중대한 영향을 미칠 것으로 예상되며, 이를 반영한 장기적·적응적 하천관리 전략 수립이 요구된다.

키워드
수변식생레짐
수문지형동역학
식생확장
유사공급
모래하천
댐조절
백색-녹색 하천천이
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Information
  • Publisher :KOREA WATER RESOURECES ASSOCIATION
  • Publisher(Ko) :한국수자원학회
  • Journal Title :Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
  • Journal Title(Ko) :한국수자원학회 논문집
  • Volume : 59
  • No :9
  • Pages :1017-1031
  • Received Date : 2026-05-12
  • Revised Date : 2026-06-16
  • Accepted Date : 2026-06-18
  • DOI :https://doi.org/10.3741/JKWRA.2026.59.9.1017
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