Hwaseong City: "CHP Facility in Jin-an District Near Residential Areas and Schools Absolutely Unacceptable"

Jung Myung-geun Vows to Mobilize All Administrative Resources
to Nullify the CHP Facility Plan

The city of Hwaseong in Gyeonggi Province has reaffirmed its opposition to the placement plan for the combined heat and power (CHP) facility in the Hwaseong Jin-an public housing district, which has been the subject of controversy regarding its location.

On April 25, the city of Hwaseong stated in a press release, "The CHP facility in the Jin-an district is being pursued without consultation with the city," adding, "Our position of 'absolutely not at the current location' will never change."

The Jin-an district is a project area announced in 2021 by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport as part of measures to expand housing supply in metropolitan areas. Approximately 29,860 housing units are planned to be built on about 4.53 million square meters in the Jin-an, Banjeong, Banwol, Gisan, and Byeongjeom-dong areas of Hwaseong. The district designation was officially announced in February of last year.

However, local residents have raised objections after it became known that the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), the project operator, included a plan to install a CHP facility in the southeastern part of the district in its application for district plan approval submitted to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. The CHP facility is an urban infrastructure intended to supply heating to the Jin-an district.

The city stated, "The planned site for the CHP facility is home to about 1,500 students and is a densely populated residential area where many citizens live," adding, "Installing such a facility in this location is an act that seriously threatens the health and residential environment of citizens." The city also noted that it has repeatedly conveyed this position to both the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and LH.

Jung Myung-geun, Mayor of Hwaseong, said, "A CHP facility planned without the consent of citizens cannot be justified under any pretext," and added, "We will mobilize all administrative resources and make every effort to nullify the current plan at its root."