Wonjucheon Dam Completed Today...Nation's First 'Community-Requested Flood Control Dam'

Usually No Water Storage... Water Stored Only During Flood Season to Prevent Overflow and Inundation
Outdoor Stage, Futsal Court, and Other Leisure Spaces Created Near Dam for Citizens

Wonju City, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province (Mayor Won Gang-su) held the completion ceremony of the Wonjucheon Dam on the afternoon of the 31st at the futsal court in the downstream park to prevent flood damage caused by frequent heavy rains in the Wonjucheon watershed.

The Wonjucheon Dam, constructed to prevent flood damage caused by frequent heavy rains in the Wonjucheon watershed of Wonju-si, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, held its completion ceremony on the afternoon of the 31st and began operation.

The Wonjucheon Dam was included as a flood control dam in the long-term dam construction plan in 2012 to prevent flood damage in the Wonjucheon watershed. Construction began in July 2019, and after completing comprehensive test operations and over five years of progress, the completion ceremony was held on this day, marking the start of full-scale operation. A flood control dam normally does not store water, maintaining the natural flow of the river, but temporarily stores floodwaters during the flood season.

The Wonju Dam is a concrete gravity dam constructed at 833 Sinchon-ri, Panbu-myeon, Wonju City, with a height of 46.5 meters, a length of 210 meters, and a total storage capacity of 1.8 million tons. The total project cost was 90.6 billion KRW.

Wonjucheon Dam, constructed to prevent flood damage caused by frequent heavy rains in the Wonjucheon watershed, held its completion ceremony on the afternoon of the 31st and began operation. The ceremony was attended by Kim Wan-seop, Minister of Environment, Kim Jin-tae, Governor of Gangwon Special Province, and Won Gang-su, Mayor of Wonju City.

The Wonjucheon watershed, which runs through Wonju City, has steep slopes in the upper region and gentle slopes downstream, causing rapid increases in water flow even with small rains, leading to frequent flooding and widespread flood damage in the past. In the summers of 1998, 2002, and 2006, river overflows caused approximately 53.5 billion KRW in property damage and five casualties.

With the completion of the Wonjucheon Dam, it is expected that flooding of Wonjucheon due to heavy rains and the resulting large-scale flood damage in nearby areas can be prevented.

The Wonjucheon Dam, constructed to prevent flood damage caused by frequent heavy rains in the Wonjucheon watershed area of Wonju City, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, held its completion ceremony on the afternoon of the 31st and began operation. The photo shows the view of Wonju Dam from the upstream area of the dam.

Under normal conditions, water flows naturally like in the Hantan River Dam and Gunam Dam, and during floods, the flow is controlled through sluice gates. Nearby, walking trails, a children's playground, an outdoor stage, a futsal court, and parks will be created to provide leisure spaces for citizens.

Additionally, the Wonjucheon Dam is the nation’s first flood control dam proposed by a local government. Since the residents' briefing session in 2014, procedures such as forming a promotion council have been actively pursued to gather local opinions.

Mayor Won Gang-su of Wonju City stated, “The construction of the Wonjucheon Dam will be a major turning point, transforming Wonjucheon from a significant disaster risk factor into a representative rest area for citizens, ensuring residents' safety. I deeply thank all those involved who worked safely without any accidents throughout the long construction period.”

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