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Gochang County faces backlash over off-road vehicle event near protected area

Published: 19 Oct. 2025, 17:06 Updated: 19 Oct. 2025, 17:44

The “Overlanding Festival in Gochang″ off road vehicle event held in Gochang, North Jeolla [SCREEN CAPTURE]

GOCHANG, North Jeolla — Gochang County in North Jeolla, home to several Unesco World Heritage sites, is facing backlash from environmental groups after organizing an off-road vehicle event along a protected coastal area during its World Heritage Festival.

The event, held from Friday to Sunday along the Myeongsasimni Beach near Dongho Beach, featured more than 150 four-wheel-drive vehicles and pickup trucks driving and camping on the sand. It was part of the “Overlanding Festival in Gochang,” co-hosted by the county and the off-road club Joseon Chuno Wild-K, with 50 million won ($35,000) in public funding.

The festival coincided with the “2025 World Heritage Festival: Gochang Dolmen Site and Getbol,” which runs until Wednesday to promote the region’s archaeological and ecological heritage. Getbol means tidal flats and overlanding is a form of long-distance travel involving rugged vehicles, typically to remote natural destinations for camping and exploration.

Tourism or environmental hazard?

The North Jeolla chapter of the Korean Federation for Environmental Movements issued a statement on Friday denouncing the event, warning it could cause irreversible damage to the region’s delicate coastal environment.

“Although Myeongsasimni Beach lies just outside the formal Unesco World Natural Heritage boundary, it is ecologically and geologically linked to the Gochang tidal flats,” the group said. “Allowing 150 vehicles to drive through this area risks sand erosion and contradicts Unesco’s core guidelines, which call for minimizing harmful activity in buffer and adjacent zones.”

The “Overlanding Festival in Gochang″ off road vehicle event location, held in Gochang, North Jeolla [KOREA FEDERATION FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENTS]

According to the organization, Myeongsasimni is a rare straight coastline that combines sandy beach and mudflat features. Along with the nearby chenier ridges — formed by wind and tidal deposits of sand and shell — the area is considered valuable for geological and sedimentary research. It is also a crucial stopover for shorebirds and a habitat for endangered species.

“Rather than hosting events that threaten the ecosystem, Gochang should seek to expand the Unesco designation to include Myeongsasimni,” said Lee Jeong-hyeon, co-chair of the environmental group. “Ecological restoration and biodiversity preservation would benefit not only the environment but also local fishers, through sustainable tourism based on the area’s unique coastal landscape.”

'We kept the protocol,' says Gochang

Gochang County defended the event, calling it a “symbiotic festival” meant to promote the natural beauty of Myeongsasimni and stimulate marine tourism.

“This is not just a car event. It is part of a broader tourism development project centered on Myeongsasimni’s 8.5-kilometer (5.2 mile) sandy beach — the only such stretch along Korea’s west coast,” the county said in a statement.

The ″2025 World Heritage Festival″ held in Gochang, North Jeolla, on Oct. 2 [GOCHANG COUNTY]

Officials added that the event served as a trial phase for a larger plan and had full cooperation from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, under which the county is bidding for designation as a marine leisure tourism city.

The county said it obtained official authorization from the Gunsan Regional Office of Oceans and Fisheries for use of the coastal area and has followed all marine ecosystem protection guidelines. It also pledged to dismantle all temporary structures and restore the site immediately after the event.

Local officials said they held advance public hearings with residents and the local fishing cooperative to explain the purpose, safety measures and environmental precautions, promising the event would not disrupt fishing activities or local livelihoods.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY KIM JUN-HEE [[email protected]]