"Unprecedented Disaster"
Business Owners Fear Prolonged Water Crisis Will Be Unbearable
As Gangneung, Gangwon Province, where a "disaster state" has been declared due to an extreme drought, has begun implementing water rationing by shutting off 75% of water meters, local self-employed business owners have expressed serious concerns about the impact on their businesses.
On the 30th, water was flowing from the drinking water valve at Daegwallyeong Saemteo in Gangneung, Gangwon Province. Photo by Yonhap News
On September 1, Lee Sangmoo, President of the Gangneung Small Business Association, said on MBC Radio's "Kim Jongbae's Focus" program, "There are significant problems not only with daily activities such as washing and doing laundry, but also with using the restroom," adding, "Since Gangneung is a tourist city, there is anxiety that business operations will not run smoothly."
Lee explained, "Eighty-five percent of self-employed businesses in Gangneung are in the food and lodging sectors. There are so many noodle restaurants here that we even hold a noodle festival. For dishes like makguksu, strong water pressure is needed to rinse the noodles, and a large amount of water is used. With water rationing and reduced water pressure, there will be many difficulties." He continued, "If this situation continues, noodle restaurants in particular will struggle. This year marks the 70th anniversary of Gangneung's establishment as a city, and this is an unprecedented disaster in 70 years."
On the 29th of last month, Gangneung Obong Reservoir, which supplies 87% of the local area's drinking water, was nearly dried up. Photo by Yonhap News
Lee also said, "In high-altitude areas or regular houses, the water used to gush out, then trickle, and now we expect it will only drip. Gangneung has many large resorts and pool villas, and these will also be affected."
Regarding the most urgent support needed, he said, "The city is currently working on civil engineering projects for the Yeongok Dam, pipelines, and water transmission lines, and I hope the pace can be accelerated. Drinking water is being secured through donations from across the country, but what is most needed is water for daily use. Support is especially needed to secure daily-use water at the raw water intake stations."
According to the Korea Rural Community Corporation's Rural Water Integrated Information System on this day, the water storage rate at Obong Reservoir, Gangneung's main water source supplying 87% of the area's daily-use water (serving a population of 180,000), stood at 14.5%. This is a drop of 0.4 percentage points from the previous day (14.9%) and marks a new record low for consecutive days. With the storage rate falling below the 15% threshold considered the minimum for drinking water supply, Gangneung began implementing water rationing by shutting off 75% of water meters as of the previous day.
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