Since the late 90s, Korea’s southern island of Jeju has celebrated the arrival of spring by setting fire to vast fields of silver grass on the slopes of one of its famous volcanic cones. The annual event long attracted tourists and locals alike.

However, the Jeju Fire Festival has been on hold for three consecutive years over safety and environmental concerns. Its resumption next March is now the subject of heated debate, with locals and environmental activists at odds.

The debate centers around the environmental impact. While there is broad agreement that burning fields results in worse air quality, the question often comes down to how much environmental damage should be tolerated to preserve a cherished local festival.

Daniel Swain, an American climate scientist at the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability at the University of California, Los Angeles, offers a different perspective.

"The act of intentionally burning fields actually lowers the risk of destructive wildfires," he said in an interview with The Korea Herald, referring to it as “a prescribed fire.”

“It’s a land management tool used to reduce dry vegetation, like dead leaves and grass, which can serve as fuel for wildfires. Additionally, it supports healthy ecosystems by clearing out invasive species and encouraging the growth of native plants,” he added.

According to the climatologist, whose research focuses on climate-related natural hazards, wildfires -- as they become more intense and destructive – have emerged as a real threat to many countries. And globally, prescribed burning is “necessary to prevent wildfires and restore ecosystems to healthier conditions," he said.

Revival eyed after three-year hiatus

The three-day Jeju Fire Festival is a relatively recent tradition, first held in 1997. It started during a period when many local festivals were being launched or revived to boost regional economies and attract tourists.

The festival features a range of interactive programs, including fire performances and traditional folk games, but the highlight is undoubtedly the torching of a 260,000-square-meter grass field on the southern slope of Saebyeol Oreum. It was apparently very successful, drawing somewhere between 200,000 and 300,000 visitors each year.

Although the festival itself is not rooted in tradition, the burning ceremony traces its origins to Jeju’s ancient agricultural practice of "bangae," in which people burned dead grass to eliminate pests while praying for wealth and well-being.

In 2022, the event was suspended in the wake of extensive wildfires which ravaged the country’s eastern coast. A total of 20,923 hectares of forest in Uljin and Samcheok, Gangwon Province, were burned -- an area more than a third the size of Seoul. It was not held the next two years either, as environmentalists intensified their criticism of the event, in addition to concerns about safety.

In response, the Jeju provincial government decided to salvage the festival by using electric lighting instead of real fire to simulate burning flames.

However, the situation took a new turn when the provincial council approved a bill in November, proposed by thousands of local residents, to revive the ceremony with real fire.

One resident of Aewol-eup who spearheaded the bill is Kim Seong-jin, head of the Bongseong-ri village, who stressed "the importance of cultural heritage" in a phone interview with The Korea Herald.

"Why do they (opponents of the Jeju Fire Festival) ignore the importance of educating future generations about the nomadic culture of our ancestors? The festival has played a crucial role in introducing the island’s culture and history not only to young people but also to foreign tourists," he said.

Debate rages on

Today, opinion remains sharply divided on whether to revive the Jeju festival.

Many residents, not just in Aewol-eup where the festival used to take place, but from elsewhere on the island, say it is a tradition worth preserving, as long as prudent measures are taken to manage risks.

Even some firefighters on the island agree, suggesting "an increase in safety personnel" for the event.

"The festival is an important cultural tradition passed down through generations. Rather than discontinuing it, it would be better to take measures to prevent wildfires, such as deploying more safety personnel or reducing the area of land where the fires are lit," said a fire officer at Jeju Seobu Fire Station, who wished to remain anonymous.

Environmental groups continue to criticize such events.

Seo Jae-chul, a senior ecological activist at Green Korea United, told The Korea Herald that the fire festival poses a significant risk of causing wildfires.

"Saebyeol Oreum, where the event takes place, has a slight slope, making the hill more vulnerable to fire. Additionally, Jeju is home to many pine trees, and when these pines catch fire, the flames spread even more quickly," Seo said.

Seo also noted a vicious cycle of wildfires and climate change.

“Extended periods of drought are becoming more common due to climate change, leaving landscapes highly flammable. Reduced rainfall accelerates the drying process. This combination of heat and dryness causes wildfires to not only start more easily but also to spread rapidly,” he said.

“As wildfires burn through forests and grasslands, they release large amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. The increased heat accelerates climate change, creating more extreme weather patterns, prolonged droughts and higher temperatures, all of which heighten the risk of future wildfires.”

Swain, the UCLA’s climate scientist, highlighted the educational value of the fire festival.

"Fire itself is not inherently harmful. It can be highly beneficial when carefully managed but highly destructive as a wildfire. Cultural events involving 'kinder' forms of landscape-scale burning, like the Jeju Fire Festival, can help people understand the full spectrum of fire," he said.

"In the United States, there is currently a resurgence of cultural and traditional burning practices among various Indigenous groups, spanning from the Great Plains to the Pacific Coast."