Mt. Kuwol

Mount Kuwol is a biosphere reserve on North Korea's west coast, about 100 km southeast of Pyongyang. It combines a 954 m mountain with coastal wetlands, lagoons, river estuaries and farmland, and it was added to the international biosphere network in 2004.

The coastal wetlands support migratory birds such as the black-faced spoonbill and the Chinese egret.

The core area protects an old forest ecosystem that survived the Korean War, and ginseng and other native plants are protected there.

The reserve joins a rounded 954 m mountain with a low coastal plain of estuaries and lagoons on the Yellow Sea side of the peninsula.

Kuwol has a temperate coastal climate on the west coast, with cold dry winters and warm humid summers.

Kuwol is one of the five celebrated mountains of Korea and a long-standing resort area. Woljong Temple stands within the reserve.

Both the core area and the buffer zone lie within a nature reserve dating to 1976, and the area joined the UNESCO biosphere network in October 2004.

The core area is largely limited to sightseeing and visits to Woljong Temple.

The nearest city in the row is Haeju, about 40 km away. The core area is largely off-limits apart from sightseeing.

Agriculture is significant and the area is a major grain-producing region, so conservation is built around a core forest, a buffer zone and a transition area. The core area has no residents.