Chungnam, Saving Bunanho Lake through 'Public-Private Cooperation'... Promoting the National Project for the Reverse Reclamation Project

[Asia Economy (Hongseong) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Chungnam Province is establishing a public-private cooperation system to secure momentum for the Bu Namho reclamation reversal project.

According to the province on the 18th, representatives of local farmers and fishermen from Seosan City and Taean County signed a public-private business agreement the day before to mutually cooperate for the win-win development of Bu Namho.

Under the agreement, the city, county, and local farmers and fishermen will cooperate to secure the driving force for promoting the national project status of the Bu Namho reclamation reversal project.

In continuation, the public and private sectors also decided to form and operate the ‘Bu Namho Win-Win Development Council.’ The council will lead ▲ sharing values and information and consulting for sustainable development around Cheonsuman and Bu Namho ▲ supporting research and development for the conservation and management of ecosystems near Bu Namho ▲ cooperating and jointly responding to local and central government projects for the win-win development of Bu Namho.

Along with this, the province plans to take comprehensive measures such as forming a coalition for ecological restoration of the southwestern coastal estuaries, holding policy forums at the National Assembly, and exchanging information and technology with advanced overseas locations such as the Netherlands, to ensure that the Bu Namho reclamation reversal project is included in next year’s government preliminary feasibility study target projects.

Meanwhile, Bu Namho is an artificial lake created in the 1980s through reclamation projects in Buseok-myeon, Seosan City, and Nam-myeon, Taean County, Chungnam Province.

However, since the reclamation project, the water quality of Bu Namho has deteriorated to the extent that it is difficult to use as agricultural water (grade 6), causing pollution of Cheonsuman and damage to fishing grounds due to freshwater lake discharge during the rainy season. Above all, the foul odor caused by water quality deterioration is an obstacle to attracting companies to the Taean Enterprise City and Seosan Well-being Special Zone.

The province is promoting the Bu Namho reclamation reversal project for the same reasons. The core of the project is to resolve current problems by restoring the ecosystem damaged by past reclamation projects to its original state.

Currently, the province is also drawing up a blueprint to develop the Bu Namho area into a marine ecological city through the reclamation reversal project.

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