Creation of 820,000㎡ Buffer Green Space in Northern Incheon... Residents Oppose

Incheon City Plans to Establish 'Green Network' Linking Parks, Green Spaces, and Waterfronts
Emergency Committee: "No Communication with Residents, Revoke Hwanchoong Green Space Designation"

Location Map of Buffer Green Spaces in Northern Incheon by Phase [Provided by Incheon City]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] Incheon City is pushing forward with the creation of a large-scale buffer green space in the northern area, where industrial complexes are concentrated.

The city announced on the 13th that it plans to establish a buffer green space covering 820,000㎡ in the Oryu-dong area of Seo-gu with a project cost of 291 billion KRW, aiming to protect nearby residential areas from pollution such as air pollution generated by industrial complexes and factory-dense areas, and to build a 'green network' linking parks, green spaces, and waterfronts.

Currently, the northern area of Incheon hosts 14 industrial complexes (covering 9.51 million㎡), including Geomdan General Industrial Complex and Gimpo Hakun and Yangchon Industrial Complexes.

In comparison, the park and green space area in the northwestern part of Geomdan is only about 4.45 million㎡, accounting for approximately 6.2% of the total area, mostly consisting of parks and green spaces within Geomdan New Town and a cemetery park.

In particular, as small-scale factories have increased unplanned, natural green areas have been continuously damaged, and buffer green spaces for spatial separation between residential and industrial areas are at a very low level of about 0.8%.

The city expects that creating buffer green spaces will have the effect of absorbing approximately 1,908 kg of environmental pollutants annually when planting an average of 1,300 20-year-old trees per hectare. This amount is equivalent to the pollutants emitted by 1,122 diesel vehicles in one year.

The planned buffer green space covers 82 hectares, equivalent to 76 soccer fields, and the city anticipates that establishing this vast green network crossing industrial and residential areas will also contribute to reducing fine dust pollution.

According to the city, securing an urban forest of 100,000㎡ can have the effect of operating 500,000 electric fans annually, and a study shows that the creation of Yeouido Park in Seoul (0.23㎢) lowered the temperature by more than 0.9℃ compared to surrounding areas, mitigating the urban heat island effect.

An Incheon city official stated, "It is essential to create buffer green spaces to spatially separate the industrial function-concentrated area in the western part of the northern region and the residential function-concentrated area in the eastern part, and to promote sustainable and eco-friendly development in this area."

The city announced the 'Urban Management Plan Amendment' on the 6th, which includes the creation of buffer green spaces in the northern area as a major point, and is collecting opinions until the 23rd.

However, residents of Oryu and Wanggil-dong in Seo-gu, the project area, have demanded the complete abolition of the buffer green space project, claiming that Incheon City is pushing the project unilaterally without sufficient public consultation.

The Emergency Countermeasure Committee and environmental groups in Seo-gu held a press conference in front of Incheon City Hall on the 7th, stating, "The city's buffer green space plan is a large-scale special privilege only for private urban development companies," and urged, "Immediately revoke the buffer green space designation and relocate pollution-causing facilities (including 11 asphalt plants) immediately."

They criticized, "The city is allowing pollution-causing companies to settle in the Geomdan Industrial Complex, neglecting the proliferation of small factories in natural green areas, pushing unilateral designation of a small-scale special zone (Eco Science Park) without communication with residents, and indiscriminately permitting private urban development projects, thereby ruining the northern area and again forcing residents to sacrifice through the large-scale buffer green space designation."

The Emergency Committee also stated, "For over 30 years, we have suffered enormous property damage due to environmental impacts and regional development hindrance caused by the Metropolitan Landfill Site, and since 2014, we have lived in great pain from various pollutants generated by the Geomdan Industrial Complex. We expected special development like Sangam-dong near the Seoul Nanji landfill after the landfill ends in 2025, but what we got was the designation of buffer green space that causes tremendous damage to residents' land."

Residents have announced plans to carry out a citywide signature campaign, direct action to block waste imports, and demands for strict punishment of those responsible for attracting pollution and pollution-causing facilities to revoke the buffer green space creation plan.

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