Jeonnam Provincial Assembly Member Park Jin-kwon Demands Withdrawal of Gwangju Military Airport Relocation to Goheung County

Park Jin-kwon, Jeonnam Provincial Assembly Member

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Jun-kyung] Park Jin-kwon, a member of the Jeonnam Provincial Assembly (Democratic Party of Korea·Goheung 1), has demanded the withdrawal of the review of Goheung County as a candidate site for the relocation of Gwangju Military Airport.

On the 18th, during the 2nd plenary session of the 346th extraordinary meeting, Assemblyman Park stated in a five-minute speech, “Currently, Goheung is constructing the Smart Farm Innovation Valley project, which is the future food source of Goheung, and a drone-specialized knowledge industry center. Right next to the reclaimed land of Goheung Bay, the first resort in the Goheung area and a large-scale tourist complex are on the verge of completion.”

This proposal appears to represent the positions of Goheung institutions, organizations, and residents along with Assemblyman Park Geum-rae, following news on the 15th that the Ministry of National Defense was unilaterally reviewing a plan to include Goheung as a suitable site for the Gwangju Military Airport candidate locations, along with Muan and Haenam, as reported by the media.

Assemblyman Park said, “If the military airport is relocated to Goheung County, which is known as an open-air museum due to its pristine environment, it will cause noise damage leading to decreased income in agriculture, fisheries, and livestock industries. Moreover, the beautiful natural scenery and major tourist resources will be damaged, resulting in a decline in tourists and significant harm to the livelihoods of residents.” He demanded, “We call for the withdrawal of the Ministry of National Defense’s unilateral plan to include Goheung County as a candidate site for the military airport relocation.”

He added, “The area around the reclaimed land of Goheung Bay, the candidate site for the military airport relocation, has freshwater lakes and artificial wetlands, serving as a paradise on earth where numerous winter migratory birds overwinter. This would cause enormous disruption to the major projects in Goheung Bay’s reclaimed land.” He further noted, “If the large-scale farmland of 5.1 million pyeong disappears, the livelihoods and hopes of farmers could also vanish.”

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