Suncheon City Proposes 60 Billion KRW Exceptional Incentive for Cleanup Environment Center

Monthly Payment of 1 to 2 Million KRW per Household in Final Location Area Based on 100 Households

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Hyung-kwon] Suncheon City (Mayor Heo Seok) announced on the 17th a groundbreaking incentive package worth 60 billion KRW for the construction site of the Clean-up Environment Center.

Mayor Heo Seok of Suncheon stated on January 15th during a briefing on Suncheon’s waste policy direction, “We will spare no effort to provide full incentives to the area where the Clean-up Environment Center will be established.”

Accordingly, Suncheon City will provide 2.5 billion KRW each in the year of facility groundbreaking and the year of operation, totaling 5 billion KRW, to the final selected site for the eco-friendly waste treatment facility ‘Clean-up Environment Center,’ and will also install resident convenience facilities and sports facilities worth over 23 billion KRW.

The 23 billion KRW for resident convenience facilities may be contributed to a resident support fund instead of installing convenience facilities if residents’ opinions are gathered.

Additionally, regional development project funds totaling 4 billion KRW, with at least 500 million KRW annually, will be provided.

The city will also separately pay a reward of 30 million KRW to the selected village association, making the fixed support amount reach 32 billion KRW.

There are also incentives during the operation period of the treatment plant.

For the area including the village where the facility is located, 20% of the sales from volume-based waste bags, amounting to 700 to 800 million KRW annually, will be paid over 20 years, totaling approximately 15.2 billion KRW, to cover health checkup costs, village hall operation expenses, heating costs, and more. Continuous household support payments will be provided throughout the lifespan of the treatment facility, and through village environment improvement projects, the development of the village can be accelerated by more than 20 years with full incentive support.

The total incentive amount is a staggering 47.5 billion KRW, including fixed support of 32 billion KRW and annual support of 700 to 800 million KRW over 20 years totaling 15.2 billion KRW.

Furthermore, to create jobs and revitalize the local economy, four appointed residents will serve as paid monitoring personnel to directly oversee environmental issues of the facility, and 20 local residents will work as facility operation staff, receiving approximately 11.5 billion KRW in wages.

Also, village wish project funds of 100 million KRW annually up to 500 million KRW will be provided, significantly contributing to improving residents’ living environments such as water supply installation, farm road paving, and road construction.

The background for Suncheon City’s unprecedented incentive offer lies in the fact that the current waste landfill site in Wangji-dong, used since March 1991 (landfill area 95,450㎡), is nearing the end of its lifespan, and the currently operating Juam Resource Circulation Center is not running smoothly due to the shutdown of the Naju combined heat and power plant and decreased demand for solid fuel.

There is also a NIMBY (Not In My Backyard) phenomenon among residents due to vague perceptions that waste treatment facilities are undesirable.

A Suncheon City official said, “The Clean-up Environment Center is evaluated as an eco-friendly landfill facility because it incinerates household waste using a stable treatment method verified over decades and buries the incineration ash, unlike the Wangji household waste landfill which directly landfills waste.” He added, “As the Clean-up Environment Center, a waste treatment facility, is being established in the ecological capital Suncheon, it will be built with city funds rather than private consignment. We ask for the active cooperation of citizens so that a clean and safe facility can be constructed as soon as possible for the future generations living in Suncheon.”

Meanwhile, Suncheon City plans to finalize the site for the Clean-up Environment Center, which will be built on approximately 50,000㎡ in an area free from restrictions such as water source protection zones, cultural heritage protection zones, and military facility protection areas. The facility will include a landfill, an incineration facility with a daily capacity of about 200 tons, and a recycling sorting facility with a daily capacity of about 60 tons. The final site selection is scheduled for June, with construction planned to be completed by 2025.

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