Suncheon City Council Should Stop Causing Citizen Conflicts and Return to Parliamentary Principles

Chairman Heo Yuin Must Demonstrate Leadership to Resolve Issues Within the Assembly
If Ordinance Is Amended, Wind Power Will Be Visible on All Ridges in Suncheon City

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Hyung-kwon] As the 8th Suncheon City Council's second half session (Chairman Heo Yu-in) launched, it immediately announced plans to reduce the setback distance for wind power plants, sparking criticism that the conflicting opinions on wind power are driving citizens into conflict.

The current setback distance for wind power plants was extended to 2 km from villages by the first half session of the 8th Council (Chairman Seo Jeong-jin) to block wind power development.

The second half session is attempting to change a matter that the majority of current Suncheon City Council members had approved just one year ago, reigniting confusion and conflict.

This is seen as the Suncheon City Council and some council members contradicting themselves by attempting to overturn an ordinance that the council itself enacted.

Regarding this, there are multiple criticisms that the Suncheon City Council should verify through deliberation and discussion and gather citizens' opinions, but instead, without such processes within the council, it is inappropriate to inform citizens and decide the outcome through a council vote.

Chairman Heo Yu-in has shown strong determination by accompanying field inspections of places like the Yeonggwang County wind power complex and held a Green New Deal Renewable Energy Policy meeting at the Suncheon City Council on the 2nd of last month, taking steps to reduce the setback distance for wind power plants.

However, Heo's approach contradicts the reality that even if the council pushes forward with one voice through internal debate, deliberation, consensus, and coordination, it is difficult to resolve citizen opposition to the ordinance amendment.

In other words, by not resolving the issue within the city council first and instead presenting it to the citizens, this approach goes against council principles and only serves to escalate citizen conflicts.

Citizens are currently divided into pros and cons, coming out to the streets and around Suncheon City Hall despite the COVID-19 situation and colder winter weather, expressing their opinions, a situation that is said to have been created by the Suncheon City Council.

In light of these criticisms, if Chairman Heo and the Suncheon City Council proceed to a vote showdown, it is argued that regardless of whether the ordinance is enacted or not, the ones who will be hurt are the Suncheon City Council and its members.

In particular, since Chairman Heo holds the position responsible for leading the council with leadership, it is pointed out that he must bear heavy responsibility, and that the Suncheon City Council should return to ‘council principles’ and first seek solutions through debate within the council.

Council Member A of Suncheon City Council reacted to the ordinance amendment content, saying it includes the phrase “if citizens want,” and responded, “What kind of ridiculous ordinance is this?”

In other words, it is criticized that if wind power developers persuade residents with money, they will approve wind power development, which means giving up on the ecological capital Suncheon City.

Council Member B said, "Currently, 13 measurement devices for wind turbine installation are installed in Suncheon, and seven more sites were approved this year," adding that if the ordinance is amended, "wind turbines will be visible across all the ridges of Suncheon."

An ordinance is a local norm enacted through the resolution of a local council within the scope of laws concerning affairs under the authority of a local government, and is literally a ‘law.’

It is pointed out that the phrase “if citizens want” does not fit such an ordinance.

We must remember that the current natural environment is not ours to own but borrowed temporarily, and we have the responsibility to pass it on to future generations without any damage.

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