Daejeon Environmental Group Demands "No Permission for Gapcheon Water Playground River Occupation Project"

Environmental groups in the Daejeon area held a press conference on the morning of the 12th in front of the Geumgang River Basin Environmental Office, opposing the approval of river occupancy for the Gapcheon water playground project by Daejeon City. / Daejeon Chungnam Green Alliance

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Daejeon City is planning to install a water play area on the banks of Gapcheon River in front of DCC in Doryong-dong, Yuseong-gu, with a budget of 15.8 billion KRW, while environmental groups in the Daejeon area have urged the Geumgang River Basin Environmental Office to deny the river occupancy permit.

On the morning of the 12th, the Daejeon Chungnam Green Union and Daejeon Environmental Movement Union held a press conference in front of the Geumgang River Basin Environmental Office, stating, “The riverbanks are spaces used by citizens for walking and parks, and serve as resting and habitat areas for wildlife,” adding, “Since they function as floodplains during flood seasons, artificial facilities that increase impermeability should be minimized.”

They continued, “Although Gapcheon River is not as wide as the Han River, Daejeon City is trying to install a water play area by only looking at successful cases without properly analyzing the situation of Gapcheon.”

They also criticized, “A water play area has already been created at the confluence of Yuseongcheon and Gapcheon Rivers, but it has been neglected without proper operation for even a year,” and added, “The plan to build a large-scale water play area usable year-round while failing to properly operate and utilize the existing water play area makes it seem like Daejeon City is obsessed with construction.”

The environmental groups delivered a statement to the Geumgang River Basin Environmental Office, saying, “Since the riverbanks are the first space citizens encounter when going to the river to rest, they should retain as much naturalness as possible and exclude artificial elements,” urging the denial of the river occupancy permit.

Earlier, Daejeon City submitted an application for a river occupancy permit for an area of 18,000㎡ to the Geumgang River Basin Environmental Office in May.

The Welfare and Environment Committee of the Daejeon City Council approved the “Daejeon City Gapcheon Outdoor Water Play Area Management and Operation Ordinance” as originally proposed on the 10th. The ordinance plans to spend 10 billion KRW in the first phase to operate a water play facility 85m long, 25m wide, and 1m deep during the summer, and then invest an additional 5.8 billion KRW in the second phase to create a flowing pool, with the facility to be used as an outdoor skating rink in winter.

The city aims to start construction in September after finalizing the design phase, with the ordinance expected to be approved at the plenary session on the 19th, targeting opening in summer next year.

A city official said, “The Gapcheon water play area has long been planned in the basic river plan,” adding, “It is intended to utilize the waterfront area on the riverbank, which is located in the heart of the city and has good accessibility, as a leisure space for citizens.”

He added, “There are no facilities blocking the flow of water as the environmental groups are concerned, and measures have been prepared to deal with flooding.”

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