Renaturalization vs. Additional Maintenance... The Unending Four Major Rivers Controversy [News Seolcham]

Opposition: "No Major Damage Where Four Major Rivers Were Maintained"
Calls to Continue Tributary Maintenance Projects
Ruling Party's Presidential Pledge: Weir Dismantling, Opening, and Renaturalization
Five Audits in 13 Years... A Hot-Button Issue in Politics

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The controversy surrounding the direction of the 'Four Major Rivers Restoration Project', which was promoted during the Lee Myung-bak administration in 2009, has reignited. President Lee Jaemyung previously pledged during the last presidential election to dismantle or open the weirs on the four rivers and restore them to their natural state. However, the opposition party is pushing to complete the unfinished tributary maintenance projects, citing flood control as the reason. The actual flood prevention effects of the Four Major Rivers weirs and their impact on nature and ecosystems have always been hotly debated in political circles.

Opposition: "No Damage Where Four Major Rivers Maintenance Was Done... Achievements Should Not Be Set Aside"

Ipo Weir installed on the Han River during the Four Major Rivers Restoration Project. Photo by Asia Economy DB

Kim Jungjae, Policy Committee Chair of the People Power Party, stated at the party's Emergency Response Committee meeting held at the National Assembly on the 21st, "Areas where preemptive maintenance of the main streams of the Four Major Rivers was carried out responded to the recent heavy rains stably and without significant damage," and added, "We must not be preoccupied with erasing the achievements of the previous administration. The standards for drainage facility capacity should be reestablished and refined, and river dredging policies should be strengthened."

Within the opposition, there are also voices insisting that the tributary reinforcement work, which was left incomplete during the Four Major Rivers project, must be finished. This is because only the main streams of the rivers were reinforced in the previous project. In this regard, Representative Ahn Cheolsoo emphasized at a press conference on the 22nd, "While the main streams of the Four Major Rivers have been maintained, the tributaries are still being neglected," and stressed, "Due to climate change, tributaries are flooding severely, so a large-scale national-level maintenance is necessary."

This is not the first time the People Power Party has highlighted the flood prevention effects of the Four Major Rivers project. In 2023, then-spokesperson Kim Geuntae cited disaster yearbook data in a commentary, stating, "Before the Four Major Rivers project, it was common to suffer damages of hundreds of billions of won during the rainy season, but after the project, damages decreased by more than 90% even with the same amount of rainfall."

Five Audits in 13 Years Since the Four Major Rivers Project... Unending Controversy

The Four Major Rivers project was a large-scale maintenance project for the basins of the Han River, Nakdong River, Geum River, and Yeongsan River, which are Korea's four major rivers, and was carried out from October 2009 to the end of 2012. The core elements included dredging to remove sediment accumulated on the riverbeds and installing weirs to maintain water depth and reduce flood damage.

However, controversy has persisted over whether the Four Major Rivers maintenance actually had flood prevention effects and whether it caused ecological damage. From 2011 to 2023, a total of five audits were conducted, but the conclusions differed depending on the administration. The first audit concluded that the project "could help with flood management and resolving water shortages," but in 2013, concerns were raised about "unreasonable water quality management" and the potential for water quality deterioration. During the Moon Jae-in administration in 2018, it was found that the weirs installed on the Four Major Rivers were predicted to increase algae concentrations, but the project proceeded without any measures. In contrast, the 2023 audit criticized the Moon Jae-in administration's push to dismantle and open the Four Major Rivers weirs as an "unreasonable economic analysis."

The future of the Four Major Rivers project has also diverged depending on the administration. The Moon Jae-in administration promoted the 'Four Major Rivers Renaturalization Project' from 2019, deciding to dismantle or permanently open five weirs mainly built in the Geum River and Yeongsan River areas. However, five years later, the Yoon Suk-yeol administration halted the project by canceling the decision on the weirs. Nevertheless, the ruling party revived the Four Major Rivers renaturalization and water quality improvement as one of its climate crisis response pledges in the recent presidential election and announced plans to push forward with the dismantling of the weirs decided during the Moon Jae-in administration.

Environmental groups are strongly pressuring the Lee Jaemyung administration to include the Four Major Rivers renaturalization as a national policy task. On the 23rd of last month, the coalition of environmental groups 'Citizens' Action for Weir Demolition in the Geum, Nakdong, and Yeongsan Rivers' held a press conference and stated, "After the Sejong Weir was opened, the natural ecosystem of the Geum River has clearly recovered. Now, a plan must be made to open all 16 weirs on the Four Major Rivers," demanding, "Include weir opening and renaturalization as a national policy task."

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