42 Additional Victims Recognized for Environmental Pollution at Seocheon Old Janghang Smelter... Total 90 Victims

Included in Relief for Holders of 51 Diseases Including Asthma, Hypertension, and Diabetes
Medical Expense Support for Past 10 Years + Next 5 Years with Monthly Maximum Care Allowance of 1.42 Million KRW

Old Janghang Smelter site view. (Photo by Asia Economy DB)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] An additional 42 victims suffering from 51 types of diseases including asthma, hypertension, and diabetes among the environmental pollution victims from the old Janghang Smelter in Seocheon, Chungcheongnam-do, have been recognized as eligible for damage relief.

On the afternoon of the 29th, the Ministry of Environment held the 23rd Environmental Pollution Damage Relief Committee meeting via online video conference and acknowledged environmental pollution damage for 42 residents near the old Janghang Smelter in Seocheon who applied for damage relief.

The number of recognized victims from the old Janghang Smelter in Seocheon has increased to a total of 90 people (excluding duplicates), including the previously acknowledged 76 victims exposed to cadmium.

The committee reviewed the eligibility of 45 applicants who applied for the additional advance payment project for environmental pollution damage relief, which the Ministry of Environment has been implementing since December 1 of last year.

As a result of the review, it was confirmed that residents who lived for more than five years within a 4 km radius of the smelter, the pollution impact zone, from 1936 when the old Janghang Smelter was operational until 2009 when the government announced the comprehensive soil pollution countermeasures, were exposed to heavy metals and other pollutants.

In 2017, the Ministry of Environment recognized that 76 residents suffered damage due to cadmium exposure. At that time, damages related to copper, arsenic, lead, and nickel were excluded from relief due to insufficient scientific research results.

This time, based on research results related to these heavy metals and associated diseases, the Ministry of Environment acknowledged the correlation with 51 types of diseases including hypertension and diabetes.

The 51 types of diseases eligible for treatment and recuperation costs include 12 cadmium-related diseases recognized in 2017 such as kidney disease and osteoporosis, ▲ 7 respiratory diseases (asthma, bronchitis, etc.), ▲ 8 circulatory diseases (hypertension, etc.), ▲ 11 endocrine diseases (diabetes, etc.), ▲ 6 skin diseases (dermatitis, etc.), ▲ 3 genitourinary diseases (chronic kidney disease, etc.), ▲ 2 neurological diseases (Parkinson's disease, etc.), and ▲ 14 other diseases (anemia, etc.).

Residents recognized as victims will receive medical expense support for the past 10 years and the next 5 years.

Once the damage grading is completed by June next year, victims can receive a recuperation living allowance of up to 1,421,000 KRW per month (Grade 1) depending on their grade.

Hamina, Director of Environmental Health Policy at the Ministry of Environment, said, "We hope that this damage relief will help heal the long-standing pain and suffering of the victims of the old Janghang Smelter, even if only a little," and added, "We will continue to strive to provide additional relief to those suffering from environmental pollution damage."

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