Odds and Ends 10/11/09

I thought that the Four Rivers Project and the Grand Canal Project are two separate things. The Grand Canal Project was scuttled when President Lee promised that the project would not happen under his administration. It seemed to me that the opposition to that plan was in the right.

The Four Rivers Project seems to me not to be a boondoggle but a necessity. South Korea should indeed control their rivers from causing billions of dollars in damage every flood season, keep sewage and river water separate during storms, keep rivers from drying out, collect excess storm water for future use in times of drought, and develop stretches of riverbanks as beautifying parks and nature preserves. It seems to me that the construction work on the rivers will cause temporary damage to the ecosystem, but the rivers should be cleaner upon completion. What have you fellas learned I haven’t yet?

To Mr. R. Elgin. You do have a good case regarding the development of some prime stretches of the coast causing environmental damage. You pointed out to me earlier a development, which reminded me of Miami Beach. But what can you do? Such developments create wealth and jobs in a nation, which aspire to have more of both. I mean Korean firms had lead roles in the development of Dubai’s artificial islands. What kind of damage that must have created! How can you not feel a mixture of both pride and concern for the Koreans, who have developed themselves into the top ranks in the field of industrial construction and engineering and must alter landscapes–sometimes to disastrous ecological results–to do their jobs?

When I first started reading about Korea, I saw images of malls crumbling over crowds and falling bridges, pictures of dead fish and gunk sailing down the main rivers, and industrial smokestacks puffing out black smoke among apartments. This was not that long ago. But now, I am slowly coming around to believing that maybe the Koreans actually know what they are doing–both the good and the bad. At least, I am seeing some really stunning photos and video images of South Korea and would like to visit one day.

“It that is not mismanagement, then Sejong City must be a great place to build apartments.”

Well, I don’t know if comparing the Grand Canal Project, Saemangeum, and Sejong City to the Four Rivers Restoration Project is completely fair. You will at least grant that South Korea is capable of occassionally undertaking expensive projects, which result in tremendous positive value for society. Most notably, rebuilding itself after the Korean War required tremendous amount of public, private, and foreign investment. The Koreans freely admit that they devastated large ecosystem during their rapid growth period. But now, the Koreans are at a stage where they need to clean up the local pollution and improve infrastructure to increase the quality of life for its citizens and increase its value as a destination for tourists and skilled workers.

But the purposes of the three boondoggle projects improved nothing. The value of the Grand Canal Project was dubious and negative conclusions from economic studies, and not just the justified public furor, may have influenced President Lee to abandon the project. This right-wing-led project is dead and I think everyone should just stop beating President Lee on the head with this one. The value of Saemangeum reclamation project was dubious. Clearly, this project is the definition of a money-squandering boondoggle, with the value added benefit of having poisoned and destroyed one of Asia’s most important tidal flats. Finally, the left-wing-led Sejong City project is an atrociously planned project of raging incompetence, which is going to profoundly alter the behavior of its and Seoul’s residents in unforseeable and possibly fascinating ways.

The above projects have nothing in common with the Four Rivers Restoration Project, which have obvious public, economic, and ecological benefits, some of which I have listed in my previous post and which you probably are already aware of. Furthermore, it seems to me that the companies involved would have a tremendous incentive to implement the plans and complete the project successfully because this is an engineering technology which has an added value of being exportable. It seems to me that the Koreans are staking their reputation as civil engineers on these large public ventures and they need to successfully complete projects like this on Korean soil to prove to customers that they are capable. Currently, South Korean firms are involved in or have successfully completed massive public infrasture projects outside of Korea, in ASEAN states, India, and the middle east. And despite the epic boondoggles listed above, Korean construction and civil engineering are in high demand and enjoy a good reputation around the world.

A massive public works project like the Four Rivers Restoration done poorly must tarnish President Lee’s and the national reputation and harm his party’s political power, in addition to merely devastating public finance and the environment. Done right, the benefits are enormous for both the public and president. It seems likely that President Lee will stay personally engaged in the project, keep it fast-tracked, and won’t let mission creep, corruption, and irregularities derail the project. Considering how tenuous the support is for the project, it seems to me highly inconcievable that President Lee or the government will let profiteers take too much advantage of the largesse which will pour into this project.

But I do share in your concern about the ability of the government to control such a large undertaking. It is one thing for Dubai, Vietnam, or Cambodia to pay Korean firms for massive works, they are customers who will want to control their own spending on foreign nationals. I am hopeful the Korean government will try to do the same when having to pay their own taxpaying companies.