Decision-Making Authority on NIMBY Facilities: Will Busan City Reclaim It? ... Busan City Council Standing Committee Approves Amendment Bill

Essential Facilities Saturated, No More Neglect... Vote Scheduled for Tomorrow's Plenary Session

"Violation of Residents' Will" Gijang-gun Opposes, Calls for Rejection of Basic Local Governments' Solidarity

The ordinance to reclaim the decision-making and approval authority over nuisance facilities, which had been delegated to district mayors and county governors, back to Busan City passed the Busan City Council standing committee on the 21st.

Amid sharp conflicts between local governments and metropolitan governments over the so-called NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) solution of "Not in our backyard," the metropolitan council sided with Busan City ahead of the plenary vote.

On the same day, the Busan City Council held a meeting of its affiliated standing committee, the Maritime City Safety Committee, and announced that the "Partial Amendment to the Urban Planning Ordinance" was approved as originally proposed.

With the ordinance, which includes the content of Busan City reclaiming the decision and approval authority over cemetery parks and waste disposal sites originally delegated to basic local governments, passing the Busan City Council standing committee, the final plenary vote is imminent.

Gijang-gun has strongly opposed the amendment to the ordinance, viewing it as a violation of residents' decision-making rights in the policy process regarding locally unwanted facilities.

Also, on the morning of the 21st, the Busan City District Mayors and County Governors Council (Chairman: Choi Jin-bong, Mayor of Jung-gu), held at Geumjeong District Office, unanimously passed the "Resolution Urging Rejection of the Partial Amendment to the Busan Metropolitan City Urban Planning Ordinance" proposed by Jeong Jong-bok, Mayor of Gijang-gun.

Despite strong opposition from Gijang-gun as the ordinance amendment was pushed forward, Busan City has expressed the position that it is an unavoidable last resort to implement the waste disposal facility installation project, which is an essential facility for citizens.

The partial amendment to the Busan City Urban Planning Ordinance, which passed the standing committee this time, includes provisions that Busan City will hold the decision-making authority over urban planning facilities such as cemetery parks and waste disposal facilities, as well as the designation of project implementers and approval of implementation plans, which had been delegated to district mayors and county governors.

This amendment was submitted as an agenda item to the Busan City Council Maritime City Safety Committee after a legislative notice in July and will be put to a plenary vote on the 22nd.

Previously, as a waste disposal facility construction project, a private business operator submitted a project plan to Busan City in February last year to build a new incinerator separate from the existing one in Jeonggwan-eup, Gijang-gun, and received project approval. The plan centers on establishing an industrial waste landfill on a 132,791㎡ site.

Jeong Jong-bok, Mayor of Gijang-gun, warned, "If the amendment finally passes the Busan City Council, the authority over policy decisions regarding various locally unwanted facilities will belong to Busan City, severely undermining residents' opinions and decision-making rights," adding, "If this anachronistic amendment is pushed through, it will face strong opposition from the relevant local governments, including Gijang-gun."

However, Busan City has stated that the ordinance amendment is inevitable to establish essential facilities. The only industrial waste landfill in Gangseo-gu, Busan, is currently over 70% saturated.

An official from the Busan City Urban Space Planning Bureau said, "Waste disposal facilities are typical NIMBY facilities that no local government welcomes, but they are essential and must be established," adding, "Since the decision-making authority over urban planning facilities and related rights were delegated to basic local governments, project progress was difficult, so Busan City had no choice but to reclaim them."

An official from the Busan City Council said, "No resident wants these facilities, but someone has to do it for the citizens," and added, "This will be evaluated as a case where the city council made a magnanimous and macro-level decision to resolve the long-standing NIMBY issue."