Seoul City Holds Resident Briefing on Sangam Incineration Plant... Mapo-gu Still 'Opposes'

Demolition of Existing Mapo Incinerator and New Incinerator Plan
Seoul City "Environmental Impact Assessment Meets Environmental Standards"
Mapo District "Health Risks from Incineration Harmful Substances... Call for Cancellation"

Seoul City will hold a residents' briefing session regarding the metropolitan resource recovery facility (incinerator) to be newly established in Sangam-dong, Mapo-gu. Although the city maintains the position that the environmental impact assessment results indicate it is 'safe,' the district continues to demand its 'cancellation' based on the harmfulness of incineration.

Seoul City will hold a residents' briefing session related to the installation of the incinerator at 10 a.m. on the 12th in the reception hall of Sangam World Cup Stadium. Four hundred citizens will attend to provide opinions on the draft environmental and climate impact assessments. The city has stated that the assessment results show that the new incinerator has little impact on air quality and odor. It also explained that when the new facility operates, pollutants such as fine dust, nitrogen dioxide, and dioxins all meet environmental standards.

However, Mapo-gu opposes the construction of the new incinerator based on the risks of incineration, and conflicts are expected at the briefing session. On the 5th, Mapo-gu emphasized the dangers of harmful substances such as dioxins generated from incinerators at an international forum co-hosted with the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA). Professor Paul Connett, who delivered the keynote speech at the forum, stated, "When measured over a long period, much higher levels of dioxins are detected than currently," citing a case where eggs produced near the incinerator contained dioxin levels exceeding safety standards. On the 8th, Mapo-gu also conducted a second soil contamination survey at the planned site for the new incinerator.

Mapo-gu also argues that there is no need to build a new incinerator if the operation rates of the four incinerators in Seoul (Mapo, Gangnam, Yangcheon, and Nowon) are increased to 100%. Currently, the operation rate of the four incinerators is about 80%, and if this rate is improved to 100% through facility upgrades, additional incinerators would be unnecessary. Park Gang-su, the mayor of Mapo-gu, said, "We will not compromise on protecting residents' health and environmental rights, and the district office will take the lead in safeguarding them." He added, "If Seoul City pushes forward with the construction of an additional incinerator, it will face strong opposition from Mapo-gu residents and cause the city's wrongful administration to attract international attention."

Seoul City maintains that the plan is a 'modernization' concept that shortens the demolition period of existing incinerators so that only the new incinerator remains. On August 8, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said during a Seoul City Council administrative inquiry, "The Mapo-gu incinerator was scheduled to be completed in 2026 and coexist with the existing incinerator until 2035, but construction has been delayed. The demolition period of the existing incinerator will also be shortened, reducing the coexistence period of the two incinerators by 5 to 6 years." He added, "From a different perspective, it will be replaced by a modernized, clean, and stylish facility that the other three facilities cannot offer."

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