Seoul City to Commission 31 Water Environment Projects This Year... Laying the Foundation for a Waterside City

Issued a total of 31 water environment service contracts worth 37.3 billion KRW to create a citizen-friendly waterfront city
Allocated 51% more than last year to build safe water environment infrastructure in response to climate change

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] On the 11th, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it will commission 31 projects worth 37.3 billion KRW to transform streams adjacent to citizens' living spaces into cultural and urban vitality hubs, improve water quality for a healthy river ecosystem, and establish a safe urban environment free from flood damage.

Seoul is establishing the "Basic Plan for Supply of Stream and Urban Management Water," which seeks to restore the functions of rivers that have become dry due to urbanization by supplying advanced treated sewage water, an urban water resource, to streams and urban management water. The plan aims to improve water supply issues for each stream and build supply systems throughout the city to provide citizens with waterfront spaces rich in flowing water.

In addition, discharge facilities such as stormwater inlets and outlets, which harm safety, cause odors, and damage river landscapes, will be newly transformed. A "New Design Guideline" considering safety and design will be established so that discharge facilities harmonize with the waterfront to create an emotional atmosphere. Furthermore, a "Basic Plan for Utilization of Outflow Groundwater from Large-scale Construction Sites" will be developed to utilize outflow groundwater generated from large-scale construction sites such as railroads, roads, and complex developments.

The "Groundwater Auxiliary Observation Management Improvement Project," implemented annually in three autonomous districts, will rationally improve the groundwater observation infrastructure by balancing the placement of observation points and expanding dedicated observation points in Gangbuk, Dobong, and Nowon districts.

Seoul will also promote a project to prevent non-point source pollution generated from roads around the Jamsil water source, which is directly linked to citizens' drinking water, from flowing into the Han River by conducting a "Water Source Road Non-point Source Pollution Management Plan" study. The plan will explore customized reduction facilities for each road section to manage non-point source pollution.

This year, the small-area sewage pipeline maintenance project will also accelerate. The target areas include a total of 90.3 km of sewage pipelines in four small areas: Sanggye 1-3 (20.7 km), Cheonho-1 (40.6 km), Yongsan-22 (17.4 km), and Guro 1-1 (11.6 km). Design services for improving the function and quality of these sewage pipelines will proceed without delay.

Seoul will initiate the "Feasibility Study and Basic Plan for Phase 2 Installation of Total Phosphorus Treatment Facilities at Water Reclamation Centers" to achieve 100% total phosphorus treatment at four water reclamation centers.

Additionally, Seoul will actively promote the design to convert the 162,700㎡ area above the Nanjim Water Reclamation Center sewage treatment facility structure, which was finally agreed upon with Goyang City in 2019, into a park by covering the structure, as well as the modernization project to underground the fecal treatment facility, minimizing inconvenience to residents near Goyang City.

Seoul plans to strengthen its response system to rainfall exceeding disaster prevention performance, prioritizing citizens' safety, following record-breaking heavy rains and typhoons causing large-scale casualties worldwide, including in China and Japan last year.

Han Yoo-seok, Director of the Water Circulation Safety Bureau, said, "2022 is a process of transforming Seoul into a waterfront-centered city abundant with clean water. We are focusing on carefully reflecting and reviewing changes in urban conditions to establish policies with high public awareness. We expect many capable contractors with abundant experience and technology to participate and contribute to creating a safer and healthier water circulation city."

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