Hapcheon-gun Holds Public Briefing on Draft Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment for Southern Inland Railroad

by Choi Sungkyung

Published 31 Dec.2020 09:19(KST)

Updated 12 Aug.2025 20:49(KST)

Location map of the planned Southern Inland Railroad route (Photo by Hapcheon-gun)

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] In Hapcheon-gun, Gyeongnam Province, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 31st that it has publicized the draft Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment (SEIA) conducted since February in relation to the ‘Southern Inland Railway Construction Project.’

Public inspection of the assessment report will be available until January 26 next year, and resident briefing sessions will be held over two days from January 5 to 6 next year.

The public inspection of the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment report and the resident briefing sessions aim to collect opinions on the expected degree of damage to residents’ living environments due to the project and possible solutions.

The resident briefing session is scheduled to be held on January 6, 2021, at 4:30 PM in the large auditorium on the 3rd floor of the Hapcheon-gun Comprehensive Social Welfare Center.

The draft assessment report presents Option 1 as the optimal plan, focusing on minimizing environmental damage with economic, rational, and eco-friendly aspects (187.3 km, KRW 5.6064 trillion), and Option 2 (177.5 km, KRW 5.5681 trillion), which straightens the route considering passenger accessibility and convenience, proposing Yulgok-myeon Imbuk-ri as the location for Hapcheon Station.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport plans to complete the basic plan study around May next year after collecting residents’ opinions on the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment report and fulfilling related procedures, and then announce the railway route and station locations.

Once the railway route and station locations are decided, Hapcheon-gun plans to jointly conduct a study titled ‘Southern Inland High-Speed Railway Linked Regional Development Strategy and Station Area Development Basic Plan’ by forming a consultative body with Gyeongsangnam-do Province and neighboring local governments to establish regional development strategies and station area development plans following the opening of the high-speed railway.