Unified Management of Water Supply to Waterworks and Sewage to Environmental Corporation... Enforcement of Three Laws on Function Adjustment

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] From now on, the overall functions of water supply will be unified under Korea Water Resources Corporation, and sewage management functions will be unified under Korea Environment Corporation.

On the 31st, the Ministry of Environment announced that it will promulgate three amended laws reflecting the functional adjustments in sewage management between its affiliated public institutions, Korea Water Resources Corporation and Korea Environment Corporation.

The three laws related to functional adjustments are the "Korea Water Resources Corporation Act," the "Korea Environment Corporation Act," and the "Dam Construction and Surrounding Area Support Act," which will take effect six months after promulgation. These three laws reflect the memorandum of understanding signed last June to eliminate overlapping functions between the two institutions and maximize the effect of integrated water management.

First, all water supply functions, including installation, operation, and policy support, will be unified under Korea Water Resources Corporation.

K-water will play a role in supporting sustainable water use through establishing a safe tap water management system for the public, strengthening water demand management, preparing watershed-based water supply systems, and improving water welfare in areas vulnerable to water supply.

With this amendment, K-water will be solely responsible for the installation and operation of both metropolitan and local water supply systems. It is expected to minimize inefficiencies in water supply management such as dual management of water facilities and redundant investments that have been raised so far.

Sewage management functions will be unified under Korea Environment Corporation, a specialized water quality management institution. This decision considers the management of pollution sources such as workplaces and the linkage with water quality improvement projects.

Korea Environment Corporation will focus its capabilities on establishing an integrated watershed-level sewage management system, improving water quality of key tributaries, managing priority areas for sewage system maintenance to respond to urban flooding, and modernizing sewage treatment plants.

In the field of sewage reuse, Korea Environment Corporation will take the lead; however, K-water will also be able to install and operate reuse facilities linked to water supply such as raw and industrial water.

Until now, both institutions performed similar tasks such as installation and operation of sewage facilities, technical diagnosis, and installation and operation of reuse facilities, but with this amendment, strengthening of capabilities centered on Korea Environment Corporation in the sewage sector is expected.

Shin Jin-soo, Director General of the Water Integration Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Environment, stated, "By eliminating overlapping functions in water management and specializing affiliated institutions to strengthen their unique expertise, we will be able to provide the best water management services to the public."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.