Debate Over Flood Control Function of Four Major Rivers Weirs
Lee Jae-oh "Weirs Prevent Damage" vs Park Chang-geun "They Raise Flood Levels"
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Ju-hyung] Lee Jae-oh, a former special minister during the Lee Myung-bak administration and former member of the Grand National Party, claimed that no flood damage occurred in areas where the Four Major Rivers Restoration Project was implemented. He argued that the Four Major Rivers weirs were able to control floods and prevent damage.
However, there is no evidence supporting the flood prevention effect of the Four Major Rivers weirs, and on the contrary, counterarguments have emerged suggesting that the weirs may have worsened flood damage, intensifying the conflict.
On the 11th, Lee appeared on JTBC's "Newsroom" and stated, "There has not been a single flood-affected area around the 16 weirs of the Four Major Rivers," adding, "Based on this, it can be said that the Four Major Rivers weirs have sufficiently performed flood control and damage prevention functions."
He continued, "Although this is not a scientific claim, the area occupied by the Four Major Rivers is about half of the entire country," and added, "If you exclude mountainous areas, the plains would have all flooded if the rivers had remained as they were in the past."
In response to the anchor's question, "The Nakdong River was included in the Four Major Rivers project but still experienced flood damage," he replied, "That is an issue of poor embankment management, not the Four Major Rivers weirs," and said, "Since the Four Major Rivers project, there has never been flood damage in the Nakdong River. This time, the flood damage was caused by a dike collapsing 300 meters away from Changnyeong Weir, which is unrelated to the weir."
He added, "Before the Four Major Rivers project, places like Namji in Changnyeong would become flooded whenever it rained," emphasizing, "Flooding occurred almost every year, but since the weirs were built, such incidents have not happened. It is correct to say that there has been no damage after the Four Major Rivers weirs project."
On the 11th, part of Hwamyung Ecological Park in Buk-gu, Busan, remains submerged due to recent heavy rains. The flood advisory issued for the Gupo area in Buk-gu, Busan, located downstream of the Nakdong River, has been lifted. / Photo by Yonhap News
On the same day, before appearing on the broadcast, Lee also claimed on his Facebook that if the Four Major Rivers weirs had not existed, half of the country would have been submerged.
Lee stated, "If the 16 weirs of the Four Major Rivers had not been built, half of the country would have been submerged by this rain," and targeted members of the Democratic Party of Korea by saying, "Please visit the site before speaking. Do not distort the failure of real estate policies by blaming the Four Major Rivers project."
However, some have refuted Lee's claims as baseless. They argue that the Four Major Rivers weirs have no flood prevention function and may actually raise river water levels, increasing the risk of worsening flood damage.
In the broadcast, Park Chang-geun, a professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at Catholic Kwandong University, stated, "Before the Four Major Rivers project, South Korea had already been heavily investing in river management," indicating that flood prevention projects were already underway before the Four Major Rivers project.
He added, "Regarding the weirs, since they are structures that block the flow of river water regardless of their form," and pointed out, "Because they obstruct the flow of river water, flood water levels rise around the weirs. There have been many cases where this has led to embankment collapses."
Lee Sang-don, a former member of the Minsheng Party, appeared on CBS Radio's "Sisa Jaki with Jung Kwan-yong" on the same day and said, "In the past, evaluations showed that the Four Major Rivers project had little effect on flood control," explaining, "If only dredging had been done deeply without building weirs, water levels would have dropped and floods could have been prevented, but because weirs were built and blocked the flow, it became a 'stepped lake' and was ineffective in preventing floods."
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