Gwangju SRF Restart Postponed to Next Month After Odor Suspension

On the morning of the 14th, residents held a rally with hand signs and shouted slogans at a meeting to resolve odor issues held at the combustible waste fuelization facility (SRF) within the metropolitan sanitary landfill in Yanggadong, Namgu, Gwangju. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

The restart of the combustible waste fuelization facility (SRF) at the metropolitan sanitation landfill in Yanggadong, Namgu, Gwangju, which had been suspended due to odor issues, has been postponed as it awaits approval from the Ministry of Environment.

According to SRF operator POSCO E&C and others on the 21st, the suspension of the SRF operation will be extended until October 25.

POSCO E&C had halted the SRF for three weeks starting from the 1st of this month to repair equipment and install additional facilities aimed at reducing odors.

Originally, the company planned to restart operations on the 22nd, but explained that under current regulations, the newly installed activated carbon adsorption equipment must receive approval for use from the Ministry of Environment before operations can resume.

During the suspension, POSCO E&C replaced the packing material inside the SRF chemical scrubber (a material that increases the contact area for chemicals to better absorb and remove odor components), installed an air curtain, sealed odor leakage points, and conducted internal cleaning.

With the suspension ongoing, waste brought to the SRF will be directly landfilled at a nearby landfill site.

A POSCO E&C official stated, "We will thoroughly prepare to ensure stable operation of the facility as soon as the Ministry of Environment's approval process is completed."

Meanwhile, as residents continued to file complaints about SRF odors, the Health and Environment Research Institute conducted pollution tests from June until recently, and several instances of complex odors exceeding legal standards were detected.

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