Jin-tae Kim: "150 Million Tourists Visited Gangwon Province Last Year"

Gangwon Governor Interview on MBC's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus'
"Only 6 Pillars for the Cable Car up to Seoraksan Ridge"
"In Switzerland, Trains Climb Mountains Several Thousand Meters High"

"In Switzerland, trains?not cable cars?go all the way up to mountains several thousand meters high. Yet, no one criticizes Switzerland for damaging the environment."

On the 28th, Kim Jin-tae, Governor of Gangwon Province, made this statement in an interview with MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' regarding the Ministry of Environment's conditional approval decision on the Seoraksan Osaek Cable Car. Governor Kim dismissed concerns about environmental damage related to the Osaek Cable Car by citing the Swiss example.

Kim said, "We need to allow people who have physical difficulties to visit even the top of Seoraksan. This is called the right of access. We have made long efforts to guarantee this, but concerns about environmental damage caused significant delays," adding, "This project has been ongoing for over 40 years, and only recently, just yesterday, did it pass the environmental impact assessment, aiming to preserve the environment while ensuring the right to enjoy it."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Kim stated, "Some people worry that cable cars cause significant damage, but there are only six pillars supporting the cable car that goes up to the Seoraksan ridge," explaining, "Starting from the bottom, six pillars are installed over 3.3 km, reaching the ridge, and then it comes back down."

He added, "During autumn foliage season, many people line up to climb all the way up Seoraksan. Which causes more damage: people trampling the area or the cable car? We believe that building the cable car can actually protect the environment."

Especially regarding the economic inducement effect of the Osaek Cable Car, Kim emphasized, "This is not about generating hundreds of billions in profit. Gangwon Province has been gaining popularity recently. According to statistics, last year, the total number of tourists visiting Gangwon Province reached 150 million."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Kim said, "That many people visit. Especially the Yangyang Seoraksan area is loved by many of our citizens. When these people hear that they can take the Osaek Cable Car up to the Seoraksan ridge, they will come to try it, and this will generate a tremendous economic inducement effect."

Kim explained, "The biggest hurdle, the environmental impact assessment, was passed yesterday. So, isn't everything done? Not quite?there are still 11 remaining approvals. Almost all central government ministries have approval authority. It can be called a 'department store of regulations,'" adding, "We plan to complete all 11 regulatory approvals within this year as quickly as possible."

Meanwhile, regarding the Legoland incident, Kim said, "I knew you would ask about Legoland. Whenever Kim Jin-tae appears, people bring up Legoland. There is a lot to say about Legoland, but if we talk about what happened before the apology, it would take all day. We have apologized."

Kim added, "We have expressed regret and apologized several times. We are working on all the recovery measures, and today, the foreign representative of Legoland visited and we plan to meet again. Since the door is open, we intend to cooperate to ensure things go well."