Naju Mayor Kang In-gyu: "Gwangju Must Take Responsibility in Resolving SRF Issue"

Through a statement on the 6th, a direct rebuttal to the 'Gwangju-si Trial Appeal'

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yukbong] Naju City, Jeollanam-do, recently strongly urged Gwangju Metropolitan City, which submitted an appeal related to the operation of the SRF Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Plant to the court, stating that "the core issue of the Naju SRF CHP Plant problem is whether Gwangju SRF is brought in" and "stop hiding behind the trial and step up as a party to resolve the issue."

On the 6th, Naju City reiterated its position against the import of Gwangju waste, saying, "Gwangju City, which referred to the SRF CHP Plant as a 'useful facility' itself, should build it in the newly designated public housing district, Sanjeong District in Gwangju, and process Gwangju waste in Gwangju."

Mayor Kang In-kyu of Naju also pointed out in a statement that "Gwangju City should actively participate in consultation and communication instead of shifting the responsibility for solving the waste problem to Naju City," and "the 7th term Gwangju City administration, which presented innovation, communication, and integrity as its three major administrative values, is ignoring Naju citizens' opposition to the Gwangju waste issue and is only waiting for the court's decision while being uncommunicative with Naju City."

He continued, "Communication with Gwangju citizens is important, but while ignoring the opinions of Naju citizens as if watching a fire from across the river, they are pressuring Naju City with a quick judgment to solve the Gwangju waste problem," and "the metropolitan local government is not taking an inclusive attitude toward the basic local government but is merely trying to achieve its goals by using coercive measures," thus downplaying the act of submitting the appeal.

Regarding Gwangju City's appeal about the "huge budget waste due to the suspension of the plant's operation," he said, "It is self-inflicted," and criticized, "Gwangju City, which recklessly selected the business operator despite Naju City's obvious opposition, is the cause of the current conflict."

This refers to the fact that despite being aware of Gwangju City's opposition to the import of SRF without prior consultation through the official letter sent by Naju City to Gwangju City on October 15, 2013, Gwangju City selected the 'POSCO Construction Consortium,' which proposed the Naju SRF CHP Plant as the demand source, as the preferred negotiation partner, causing the current conflict.

Mayor Kang also explained that Gwangju City's claim that "Naju SRF was sold without prior consultation with other local governments (Iksan, Jeonbuk)" is "completely untrue."

Naju City explained that due to the delay in the completion of the SRF CHP Plant, it sold SRF to Sanggong Energy Co., Ltd. located in Iksan City from June 2014 to May 2017 with approval from Jeonbuk Province.

Mayor Kang explained, "At that time, we supplied SRF after receiving approval from Jeonbuk Province for the user, usage facility, supply period, and supply volume. It cannot be considered that the sale was made without consultation between local governments just because approval was obtained from Jeonbuk Province instead of Iksan City."

Furthermore, he argued, "If Gwangju City thinks, as stated in the appeal, that the SRF CHP Plant is a useful facility that can recycle waste as a resource, it should not shift Gwangju waste to Naju but should promote the construction of a plant in Sanjeong District, Gwangju, for self-resolution."

Mayor Kang In-kyu of Naju emphasized, "Naju City will continue to adhere to the principle that Gwangju waste should be processed in Gwangju and overcome difficult realities with its citizens," and "Regardless of the court's decision on April 15, we will do our best to uphold the principle from the citizens' perspective."

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