During a fifteen year period, despite world-wide protest by environmentalists, the Korean Government pushed and completed the Saemangeum Project — a project to turn one of the largest and most important wetlands in Asia into farm land — even though more farm land is clearly not needed (take a look around in the country-side).
As per birdskorea.org, the current state of the flats is deplorable and in contradiction to the government’s alleged pledge, regarding the condition of this important area:
“When the courts allowed the Saemangeum reclamation to continue, the only caveat that the judges gave was that good water quality must be maintained. This is clearly not happening, but is never mentioned by media. Some indicators of severe water quality and environmental degradation:
1) Red algal sludge, outer Dongjin, May 2007.
2) Although claimed to be environmentally-friendly, large-scale reclamation causes severe water pollution and mass die-offs in many species. Dongjin, May 2007.
3) With almost no tidal movement, many tidal creeks are now filled with foam and garbage. Mangyeung, late April 2007.
4) Throwaway society. While claiming that good water quality can be maintained, Okgu tidal-flats, which once supported tens of thousands of shorebirds, is now littered with garbage. April 2007.“
. . . “Incredible as it seems, no open or clear program was in place to monitor the impacts on wildlife of this massive project - despite South Korea being a signatory to the Ramsar Convention, despite Ramsar Resolution 9.15 in 2005, recommending “the government of the Republic of Korea advise the Secretary General of the current situation concerning the sea-wall construction and reclamation of the Saemangeum coastal wetlands, and the impact of the construction work undertaken to date on the internationally important migratory waterbird populations dependent upon these wetlands” (Ramsar Res. 9.15.27.10).
Even more incredible, the major project proponents such as the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) and the Ministry of Construction and Transport have continued to insist that the reclamation is “environmentally friendly”.
Now, as a result, more species of birds are in danger of extinction due to starvation since this vital habitat is no longer available. Read more about this from the BBC here.
26 Comments
On the upside, with fewer birds flying and crapping about there will be fewer of us exposed to deadly bird flu.
I noticed that the Korean version of the birdskorea.org (birdskorea.or.kr) is absolutely quiet on this issue and has different postings. I wonder why there is such a great difference between the English version of their site and the Korean version.
Green Korea United has been going after the government for years on this, obviously without much success. Seems like Korea is pursuing thoughtless development across the country because of speculation.
Here’s a Reuters story on it from last year:
http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=10276
“On the upside, with fewer birds flying and crapping about there will be fewer of us exposed to deadly bird flu.”
Kind of like how any future honeybee extinction in North America could result in unspeakable damage to essential crops, but at least would keep me from getting stung every few summers…
“Green Korea United has been going after the government for years on this, obviously without much success.”
They are trying, it would seem. Unfortunately, dying birds and other ecological disasters aren’t likely to result in the same public outcry as a Humvee leaking brake fluid into the blessed soil of Camp Stanley.
Global, Green Korea is like the other myopic Uri Nara civic groups for going after U.S. base pollution while generally ignoring Korean companies (how clean is the Hynix plant? — the one in Oregon is a major polluter). But they did lobby the gov’t to end the Saemangeum project. It’s sad to see what little nature is left here being destroyed.
Q: Why are Korean politicians so afraid of rice farmers?
michael,
I see the slow demise of nature every time I go out fishing and it’s unfortunately going to continue. Too many people, not enough natural resources and what there is, isn’t being protected in the name of “progress”. All around Songtan, wooded hills are being ripped down for the dirt and to make room for roads and buildings. Countless gill nets in every lake and river which decimate the fish populations. Trash and pollution everywhere. If it keeps up, the future generations won’t have anything to enjoy except apartment buildings, highways and a few mountains.
Nomad–I remember pictures on your blog of the trash around the lakes and I’ve seen how the plastic the farmers use gets ripped up and goes everywhere. People in Korea don’t have pride about the land, and the gov’t doesn’t try to educate or enforce environmental laws.
Thanks for that link Michael. The one quote that caught my eye was:
The shill for the project directly contradicted the scientist, as if she and her corporation know the science! What a shame. It is difficult to believe that even foreigners have more concern for this county than many born to it but then I keep running into this sort of thing here and there.
SFS (so fucking sad!!!) I moved back to Rio Linda, California in 1998 because of Korea’s environmental destruction. The white cranes that live in the rice fields came with me. (We have or used to have rice fields in Northern California.) But the joke was on both of us. We have now become nearly like Korea. Big Paradise, They put up a parking lot!!!
Thanks for posting the links and pics - I hadn’t seen many photos of the post-completion tidal flats.
Worth keeping in mind is that the environmental groups were initially successful. The Seoul Administrative Court ruled in favor of a legal suit challenging the project brought by environmental groups in February 2005, but this was overturned by the Seoul High Court in December of that year. It took the construction company 4 months after that to fill in the last 2.7 km of the wall.
To read more propaganda, a comic strip explaining all the good the project will do, as narrated by sea birds can be found here.
Alas! The essence of being.
And if the environmental protection thingamabob flops repackage it as an anti avian flu thingamabob. My freebie to you, Ms. Kim. Why are moaning? Oh, right. Exports + freebie = hot & wet.
“It is difficult to believe that even foreigners have more concern for this county than many born to it but then I keep running into this sort of thing here and there.”
I know what you mean — and, then we get to read opinion pieces reminding us that we should be helping less and listening more.
#11
thanks for the comic link.
When I was in elementry school in Korea, school teachers made us think this was a win/win project as well. They liked to compare it to the Dutch.
Why is the govt sensitive to farmers? Well, weren’t all govts like that to some extent?
US govt had its pro farmers factions, once as well. Someone who stands out to me from highschool ed is
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.....ings_Bryan
A lot of people in Korean politics today in their 50s and 60s can claim in one way or another that they grew up in a farm or their dads did.
it’s a social struggle and change to quit farming and move into Seoul to flow along with the changing times.
It is not as bad as it used to be like the near-complete destruction of the Nakdongkang estuary during the nineties. At least some (mainly foreign scientists and conservationists) are protesting against it now.
Unfortunately, as pointed out already, too many Korean ‘greenies’ are linked with left-wing civic groups, who on their turn have massive following amongst rice farmers, supported by current Uri-party civic servants.
It’s annoying to say the least. Korea’s seemingly hellbent on destroying the environment, here and away.
BTW did anyone else notice the BBC making a terrible geography mistake. The damn place is on the west coast as far as I can see.
1. BTW did anyone else notice the BBC making a terrible geography mistake? The damn place is on the west coast as far as I can see.
An ironic statement of the lack of importance that Korea represents in the grand scheme of North East Asia’s ecology.
Thanks for an excellent post. I remember when I first got here things were so much different - I remember seeing snakes - some poisonous - on Camp Long, the many birds, squirrels and etc., even in my neighborhood now - I remember about seven years ago seeing several weasel-like animals, but no longer. It never fails to amaze me how the local press continues to rant and rave about all the animals and insects discovered in Namsan park or along the Han River, but neglect to mention the loss of habitat and wildlife in other parts of the country. Korea’s heritage and future is slipping away - will America be blamed for this too?
robert, it is too late.
one of the biggest losses on the saemangeum was on the other side of the seawall as it completely destroyed the graduated land decline underwater thus eliminating all sea creatures that live from surface to twenty meters.
years ago they built massive, french industrial incinerators in the same area. i’d like to know what the air is like there these days as well.
If the Dutch can do it, why not the Koreans?
A few years while in Chinju I was visiting a National park and there was a young Korean lad with his dad and when he saw a fish in the water he did not say fish he said “gogi”(meat/food)
One would think that with so many Koreans having lived and worked abroad that they would be MORE environemntally conscious.
Are you sure he didn’t say “mulgogi”? That is the term for live fish in their natural environment. Dead fish intended for consumption are called “saengseon.”
“Korea’s heritage and future is slipping away - will America be blamed for this too?”
Having done a spectacular job killing off their own wildlife, Koreans are now the top international bear poachers:
http://ww2.wspa-international......ars06.html
100 ethnic Koreans were prosecuted for poaching and selling bear parts in Virginia a few years ago:
http://news.ncmonline.com/news.....e32bc359b5
Figures. Now I know what happened to 여기 Bear . . .
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