Hyeongsan River Stream Environment Improvement Project Passes Preliminary Feasibility, Boosting 'Safe City Pohang' Construction Momentum

Passed the Preliminary Feasibility Study at the First Fiscal Project Evaluation Committee Meeting of 2025 on the 23rd
Mayor Lee Gangdeok: "A Major Achievement for Ensuring the Safety of Citizens and Businesses in Pohang from Disasters"

Posco City announced that the Hyeongsan River River Environment Improvement Project has passed the preliminary feasibility study by the Ministry of Economy and Finance, allowing the project to be actively promoted.

At the first Fiscal Project Evaluation Committee meeting of 2025 held on the 23rd by the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the ‘Hyeongsan River River Environment Improvement Project,’ which secured feasibility in the preliminary feasibility study, was approved.

The ‘Hyeongsan River River Environment Improvement Project,’ implemented by the Ministry of Environment, is a project to prevent flood damage that repeatedly occurs in the Hyeongsan River basin. A total project cost of 802.8 billion KRW (entirely national funds) will be invested in the 36 km section from Pohang to Gyeongju along the Hyeongsan River to install and reinforce 49.8 km of embankments, and to dredge 13.6 million cubic meters of sediment accumulated in the river to lower water levels and facilitate smooth water flow, thereby preventing flood damage and ensuring flood control safety.

This project is expected to contribute to flood prevention by expanding the river’s water flow capacity, lowering the river water level by 0.76 to 1.48 meters, and preventing river overflow even during floods with a 200-year frequency.

Posco City has continuously requested the government to dredge the Hyeongsan River to protect citizens’ lives and property from disasters caused by extreme rainfall, as flood warnings have been issued annually since 2018 due to increasing flood concerns.

In particular, Mayor Lee Gang-deok actively urged the Minister of Environment to promptly implement the Hyeongsan River channel maintenance when the minister visited Pohang in 2023. After the project was selected as a preliminary feasibility study target in January last year, he visited the Ministry of Economy and Finance in May and July to strongly advocate for the swift approval of the preliminary feasibility study for the Hyeongsan River River Environment Improvement Project, demonstrating proactive efforts.

Along with this, the city has been dedicated to building disaster-resilient infrastructure to construct a safe city of Pohang since Typhoon Hin Nam No in 2022.

In the upper reaches of Naengcheon, which suffered significant damage during Hin Nam No, the city is promoting the construction of Hangsa Dam, a flood control dam with a height of 53 meters, length of 170 meters, and storage capacity of 4.43 million tons, with a total project cost of 106.6 billion KRW. Various administrative procedures, including feasibility studies, were completed by last year, and to ensure early completion, the project will be ordered this year using a turnkey contract method for design and construction, with completion planned for 2029.

Additionally, together with Gyeongbuk Province, the city has invested a total of 171.6 billion KRW in local river disaster recovery projects for Naengcheon, Chilseongcheon, Janggicheon, Singwangcheon, and Daehwacheon, mostly completing dredging and riverbed maintenance to expand water flow areas.

Maintenance of vulnerable sections such as densely populated areas and water intake points has been prioritized and is largely completed, with all work scheduled to be completed without delay before this year’s rainy season and typhoon arrivals.

Mayor Lee Gang-deok emphasized, “The passage of the preliminary feasibility study for the Hyeongsan River River Environment Improvement Project in this era of climate crisis is a great achievement for realizing a safe Pohang for citizens and businesses from disasters. We will do our best to cooperate with the central government to promptly proceed with detailed design and construction, while also focusing administrative efforts on the construction of Hangsa Dam and local river disaster recovery projects.”