Nobody wants a garbage incinerator in their back yard

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Nobody wants a garbage incinerator in their back yard

Published: 21 Jul. 2022, 19:17

The Sudokwon Landfill in Seo District, Incheon [YONHAP]

A plan to build a waste incinerator somewhere in Seoul is running into resistance, exacerbating the capital city's growing garbage problem.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Thursday, the selection of candidate sites for the city’s new waste incinerator plant will be delayed from end of August to late September.

“We have to review the technical and economic aspects and the acceptability by residents from various angles,” an official from the city's Resources Recycling Division told the JoongAng Ilbo. “We are planning to wrap up by Sept. 15 at the earliest.”

Two attempts to find a site for an incineration plant have failed since 2019 following a ban on throwing waste in landfills in the greater capital region that goes into effect in 2026. Instead of burying the household waste generated by its 10 million residents, Seoul will have to either select and recycle the waste or burn it in an incinerator. If it fails to get an incinerator operating by 2027, a garbage crisis could occur.

Due to a prevalent Not In My Backyard (NIMBY) attitude, there were no applicants among Seoul’s 25 districts and the search failed.

The Sudokwon landfill in Seo District in Incheon has dealt with garbage from Seoul and Gyeonggi since 1992. But in 2020, Mayor Park Nam-choon declared it would close down the landfill in 2025.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government formed a location selection committee and has been conducting research to find a site.

After the Godeok-Gangil area in Gangdong District, eastern Seoul, was mentioned as a possible site, the Gangdong-gu district office strongly protested and created a task force on Wednesday.

“I will stake my post on stopping it,” Lee Soo-hee, head of the Gangdong District, said in a meeting with residents of the district on Tuesday. “I will take responsibility for the results [if the incinerator is built in Gangdong].”

On July 12, Hanam City, the neighboring region in Gyeonggi, also declared an "active opposition" to the incinerator in solidarity with Gangdong District.

The location selection committee has selected three candidate sites — but not made them public. Now it is in process of selecting a preliminary first choice.

“Once the preliminary site has been decided, the Seoul Metropolitan Government should fully communicate with the local residents to find ways to contribute to the development of the region and propose a solution to avoid damage to property values — such as making or fostering the area as a landmark,” said Phae Jae-guen, a professor of Environmental Engineering at Seoul National University of Science and Technology.

Following a revision of the Waste Management Act, from 2030, areas outside the greater capital region must incinerate or recycle household waste instead of burying it. This has made local governments across the country scramble to find sites for their own incinerator plants.

Since 2018, the city of Gwangju in Gyeonggi has pushed to establish a facility in its Gonjiam County that can incinerate 250 tons of waste a day, but met with resistance from residents of Icheon, a nearby city.

Suwon in Gyeonggi is trying to refurbish the old Yeongtong incinerator, but residents filed a lawsuit to block it.

BY LEE SU-MIN, SEO JI-EUN [seo.jieun1@joongang.co.kr]