[Seoul Autonomous District News] Dongjak-gu Flood Damage Priority Management Area Sewer Pipeline Improvement and Drainage System Enhancement Achievements; Selected as Excellent District in Seoul's 2021 Autonomous District Sewerage Management Evaluation... Jung-gu Focuses on Safety Inspections in Flood-Prone Areas... Guro-gu Supports Small Business LED Sign Installation Costs up to 1 Million KRW... Geumcheon-gu Conducts 2022 Geumcheon-gu Cooperation Council Member Training... Songpa-gu Bangi 1-dong Community Center Hosts Non-Face-to-Face 'Songpa Dullegil Jogging Challenge' Until March 31
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Dongjak-gu (Mayor Lee Chang-woo) has found that the quality of sewage systems is excellent after inspecting and improving the drainage system to prevent flood damage caused by heavy summer rains.
Last year, the district invested a budget of 21.5 billion KRW to improve sewage quality by maintaining public sewage pipelines and rainwater inlets throughout the district and inspecting sewage treatment facilities.
In particular, the district upgraded 7 km of sewage pipelines in the flood damage priority management area around Sadang-dong and improved the drainage system for 700 m of sewage pipelines near Isu Station to promote flood prevention projects.
As a result, the district was honored as an excellent district in the “2021 Autonomous District Sewage Management Performance Evaluation” hosted by Seoul City.
The autonomous district sewage management evaluation comprehensively assesses 19 items in four areas?budget, construction, maintenance, and policy cooperation?related to sewage management performance over the year for all 25 autonomous districts in Seoul.
By being selected as an excellent district this time, the district will receive an encouragement prize of 6 million KRW and priority in the allocation of Seoul City’s budget this year for dredging and expanding rainwater inflow facilities.
This year, the district secured 22.2 billion KRW for flood prevention and old sewage pipeline improvement and plans to carry out inspection and maintenance of ▲public sewage pipelines ▲rainwater inlets ▲sewage treatment facilities.
Additionally, the district plans to open the Noryangjin Modern Sewage Box, discovered during the flood relief project in the Noryangjin area from 2008 to 2011, as a cultural and historical education site for residents in May.
The Noryangjin Modern Sewage Box is an underground drainage channel 92 meters long, estimated to have been constructed around the opening of the Gyeongin Line railway in 1899, and is a facility with high historical preservation value showing changes in civil engineering technology and urban transformation.
Accordingly, the district is investing a total of 3.5 billion KRW to conduct detailed safety inspections and carry out repair and reinforcement work to create a complex cultural space for exhibitions, tourism, and historical education experiences.
Kim Sang-hoon, Head of the Flood Control Division, said, “We will do our best to create a Dongjak-gu where residents can live comfortably and safely by promoting comprehensive sewage maintenance projects this year.”
Jung-gu (Mayor Seo Yang-ho) is conducting a comprehensive inspection of flood-vulnerable areas and flood control facilities in the district.
The district conducts annual safety inspections to prevent wind and flood disasters caused by summer heavy rains and typhoons. This year, it will focus on inspecting about 540 flood-vulnerable sites including flood control facilities such as rainwater storage tanks and sedimentation basins, and construction sites, underground facilities, cut slopes, and protruding structures, checking for risk factors such as surrounding drainage channels, ground subsidence, and deformation of retaining walls and cut slopes.
The inspections will be conducted in two phases from early this month to the end of April. By the end of this month, the relevant departments will complete the first inspection for each facility, and in April, a joint intensive inspection will be conducted with related experts focusing on unaddressed issues from the first inspection.
Minor defects found during the inspection will be immediately repaired on-site. If serious defects showing signs of structural cracks, collapse, or overturning are found, repair measures will be promptly established and repairs completed before the rainy season.
In addition, the district announced that it will invest 7.3 billion KRW to carry out sewage maintenance projects throughout the year to prevent flood damage and road collapses during rainy weather. It plans to repair and reinforce old and defective sewage pipelines, including rectangular and circular pipes, and carry out maintenance and replacement of defective manholes section by section.
Furthermore, to enable rapid and systematic response in case of disasters, the district will continuously improve the accuracy of the Sewage Management System (GIS), which integrates spatial information such as the location and depth of buried sewage facilities.
Seo Yang-ho, Mayor of Jung-gu, said, “We will do our best to protect residents’ lives and property from summer wind and flood disasters through thorough pre-inspections of vulnerable areas and facilities.”
Guro-gu (Mayor Lee Sung) will support small business owners with the cost of replacing and installing LED signs.
Guro-gu announced on the 24th that it will carry out the “LED Sign Installation Support Project” to alleviate the economic burden of small business owners struggling due to COVID-19 and to encourage voluntary removal of illegal advertisements.
This project aims to block illegal advertisements that spoil the urban landscape in advance and improve the appearance and safety of streets by maintaining old and illegal signs, thereby providing residents with a pleasant living environment.
Eligible applicants are small business owners within the district with business premises under 133㎡ who open, change business type, or relocate after February 1 this year and produce and install signs, as well as existing business operators who replace old or illegal signs with LED signs.
Guro-gu will invest a total budget of 280 million KRW, including the Outdoor Advertising Development Fund, to provide up to 1 million KRW per store (excess amount borne by the advertiser) for sign production and installation costs.
Those wishing to apply can visit the Construction Management Division at the district office to submit application documents. Detailed information such as application methods and excluded business types can be found in the announcement section on the district office website. Applications are accepted until the end of December this year and may end early if the budget is exhausted.
A Guro-gu official said, “We hope this LED sign support project will ease the economic burden of small business owners and help create a pleasant street environment,” and added, “We look forward to many applications from small business owners.”
Geumcheon-gu (Mayor Yoo Sung-hoon) announced that it will conduct the “2022 Geumcheon-gu Cooperation Council Education” over two days on March 29 and 30.
This education is for members of the Geumcheon-gu Cooperation Council and its expanded meetings.
The education consists of “Understanding Cooperation and Activating Discussion Culture” and “Cooperation Deliberation Process Simulation Practice.” Based on understanding cooperation activities, participants will experience the process of discovering agendas, writing project plans, and selecting project priorities to discover and plan public-private cooperation projects.
Kim Min-ji, CEO of the social enterprise “Manyuinryeok” and a communication expert (facilitator), will conduct the education through discussions and participatory methods based on her experience in cooperation activities.
Last year, through public-private cooperation activities, Geumcheon-gu discovered 10 cooperation projects, including ▲Geumcheon Elementary Care Center Operation ▲Let’s All Go to Anyangcheon Together as a Family ▲Climate Crisis Response with the Village Community, which will be actively promoted this year.
Yoo Sung-hoon, Mayor of Geumcheon-gu, said, “We expect various agendas that residents can sympathize with to be derived through this cooperation education,” and added, “We will continue to strive to lead positive changes in Geumcheon-gu through public-private cooperation projects.”
For more information, please contact the Village Autonomy Division of Geumcheon-gu Office.
Songpa-gu (Mayor Park Sung-soo) Bangi 1-dong Community Service Center is conducting a non-face-to-face “Songpa Dullegil Plogging Challenge” until March 31.
“Plogging” is an eco-friendly campaign combining “picking up trash” and “jogging,” where participants pick up trash while running or walking in a designated area. It started in Sweden as “plogging” and has now become a global trend.
This challenge is held along the entire 21 km Songpa Dullegil trail. Anyone interested in plogging, regardless of region or age, can freely participate. Those who wish to participate can download the “Durunubi” app by the Korea Tourism Organization to start the challenge, then submit their walking results and plogging photos to the person in charge via Google Forms. Participants can receive up to 6 hours of volunteer time per person and up to 4 hours per day.
A resident who participated as a “Songpa Dullegil Bangi 1-dong Guardian” said, “It was a rewarding time to enjoy the spring weather, exercise, and protect the environment.”
Details such as how to submit results can be found on the official Songpa-gu blog and the volunteer portal 1365. For further inquiries, contact the Bangi 1-dong Community Service Center.
Mayor Park Sung-soo said, “I hope this challenge provides participants with an opportunity to rethink the values of nature protection and carbon neutrality,” and added, “We will continue to carry out creative and active eco-friendly campaigns to create a beautiful city where nature and people coexist in Songpa.”
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