The first comprehensive inspection on the ecosystem of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) will begin next week.

The Environment Ministry said Sunday that a joint team comprising some 20 officials from the Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea and the Korea Forest Service will inspect six districts and cities, to gather information on the DMZ’s topography and animal habitats.

The five-day study will seek to provide an outline of measures on preserving the DMZ’s ecosystem. The ministry plans to use gathered data from the reserach on creating an ecological park near the heavily fortified zone and request UNESCO designation of the area as a biosphere reserve by 2012.

The ministry had been negotiating with the Defense Ministry and the U.N. Command since 2006 to conduct the inspection, and got a permit to do so in September.