Imsil-gun Receives Minister of Environment Award at Water Industry Expo

Published 13 Sep.2022 11:25(KST)

[Imsil=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Nosik] Imsil-gun, Jeonbuk, received the Minister of Environment Award, the only basic local government nationwide to do so, at the largest water industry specialized expo in Korea.

The county announced on the 13th that it presented a case study on water supply business improvement at ‘WATER KOREA,’ the largest domestic water industry expo held for the first time in three years due to COVID-19, and received the highest honor, the Minister of Environment Award.

WATER KOREA, hosted by the Ministry of Environment and the Korea Water and Wastewater Works Association, was held over three days from the 31st of last month to the 2nd, featuring various concurrent programs such as exhibitions of water and wastewater-related equipment, academic presentations, special seminar conferences, and presentations on water and wastewater business improvement cases.

In particular, the 2022 WATER KOREA program included a presentation session on water and wastewater business improvement cases aimed at discovering and disseminating excellent cases related to domestic water supply operators’ business improvements, budget savings, and research achievements.

The county was recognized as an excellent case in the water supply division and won the highest honor, the ‘Minister of Environment Award,’ while being the only basic local government nationwide to participate, effectively achieving a grand victory.

The water supply division business improvement cases solicited manuscripts from water supply officials, K-water, public corporations, and related institutions, selecting 10 cases including Imsil-gun in the first evaluation.

In the second evaluation, the cases were narrowed down to six, and on the third day of WATER KOREA, presentations were made on these six cases. After judging based on business improvement, potential for dissemination, budget savings, presentation skills, and originality, two Minister of Environment Awards and one Korea Water and Wastewater Works Association President Award were selected in order of highest scores.

At the county, Water Supply Team Leader Byun Gwangjin presented under the title “Case of Combined Treatment Process of Manganese Sand Filtration Pretreatment and Membrane Filtration Process.”

Team Leader Byun explained the results of operating a combined process of a membrane filtration advanced water treatment facility introduced to enhance trust in tap water and improve water welfare for residents, and a manganese sand filtration pretreatment facility installed to prevent obstacles in the water treatment process caused by trace contaminants such as manganese.

Byun said, “Water and wastewater play a very important role in the public sector that maintains daily life and health, and the process of connecting water-related human networks and technologies is a means of coexistence for humanity that strengthens the foundation for sustainable development.”

In particular, this presentation was evaluated as an opportunity to widely publicize achievements such as the detailed analysis and identification of membrane surface contamination phenomena in the membrane filtration advanced water treatment facility, discovery and application of contamination control factors, and water quality improvement due to changes in disinfectant injection methods.

The county plans to continue steadily promoting projects such as local water supply modernization to ensure stable maintenance of water supply facilities and supply of safe and reliable tap water, improving water quality satisfaction through constant securing of basic functions of water facilities and systematic management of water distribution networks.

County Governor Shim Min said, “Given the difficult realities of local governments such as poor working conditions and limited personnel, it is very meaningful that the county was the only basic local government to reach the finals and receive a major award,” adding, “We will make further efforts to ensure that facilities closely connected to daily life, where residents can drink safe and clean water, are always maintained.”