Historic Largest Scale Lifting of Military Facility Protection Zones Including Seongnam and Seosan Airfields

Around Military Airfields and Border Areas
Total Area of 339㎢, Equivalent to 117 Times Yeouido
Nonsan Defense National Industrial Complex, etc.
Revitalizing the Regional Economy of the 'Defense Capital'

The military facility protection zone (hereinafter referred to as the protection zone), which is 117 times the size of Yeouido, will be lifted. This is the largest scale ever.

The photo is unrelated to the article.

According to the Ministry of National Defense on the 26th, the areas to be lifted from the protection zone this year total 339㎢, including areas around military airfields (287㎢), border areas with no operational impact (38㎢), and other areas including those with complaints (14㎢). The protection zones around military airfields are designated for base protection, but these have been reduced to the minimum necessary scope.

The protection zones will be lifted in seven areas including Seosan in Chungcheongnam-do and Seongnam in Gyeonggi-do. In these areas, construction of new buildings, extensions, or changes in building use can be freely carried out without consultation with military authorities, as long as they do not exceed the restricted altitude of the flight safety zones.

The Ministry of National Defense will also lift protection zones in four border areas including Cheorwon in Gangwon-do. In the lifted protection zones within border areas, construction of new buildings or extensions will be possible without height restrictions, and land reclamation or terrain modification will also be allowed. Additionally, two protection zones where local residents had filed complaints will be lifted. The Yeongi Airfield in Sejong City, which had complaints about relocation, is scheduled to be integrated and relocated to Jochiwon Airfield next year, so the protection zone around Yeongi Airfield will be lifted this time.

By region, about 141㎢ of protection zones will be lifted in Seosan, Chungnam, where there is an Air Force base. Due to the lifting of protection zones around Seoul Airport in Seongnam, about 72㎢ will be lifted in Seongnam and about 46㎢ in Seoul. Following that, the protection zone lifting areas are Pocheon, Gyeonggi (21㎢), Yangju (16㎢), Sejong Special Self-Governing City (13㎢), Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi (12㎢), and Gapyeong (10㎢). The protection zones lifted in Seoul and Gyeonggi total 177㎢, accounting for 52% of the total. For four areas including Paju, Gyeonggi, where lifting protection zones is difficult, covering 103㎢, the consultation process with military authorities for construction of buildings below a certain height can be omitted.

The Nonsan Defense National Industrial Complex mentioned by President Yoon is receiving welcoming voices from the local community. Nonsan City, Chungnam, received final approval for the industrial complex from the government on the 28th of last month. The industrial complex being developed by Nonsan City covers an area of 871,177㎡ (about 260,000 pyeong) in the Yeonmu-eup and Dongsan-ri areas. The defense industrial complex will be implemented by Korea Land & Housing Corporation (LH) as the project executor, with a total project cost of 191.7 billion KRW (including national funds). After compensation and detailed design preparation, construction is expected to start in 2025, with land supply and sales beginning in 2027.

The city expects the economic benefits of the industrial complex to reach 2.8 trillion KRW, with a total production inducement effect of 231.5 billion KRW and employment inducement effect of 1,492 people. Furthermore, through various projects such as designation as a defense opportunity development special zone and expanding the defense industrial complex from 871,177㎡ (about 260,000 pyeong) to 3.3 million㎡ (about 1 million pyeong), Nonsan plans to establish itself as the central city of South Korea’s defense military supply industry.