National Policy Disrupted...
City Considers Obstruction of Business Charges Against Suspects
Candidate Site Eligibility to Be Determined After Confirmation of False Resident Registration Allegations
On the afternoon of the 13th of last month, residents in Samdo-dong, Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, blocked the stairs leading to the community briefing session for the installation of a metropolitan resource recovery facility at the Administrative Welfare Center. Photo by Yonhap News Agency
On September 2, the Gwangju City Government announced, "Due to the police investigation into allegations of false resident registration during the site selection process for the Gwangsan-gu resource recovery facility, and as the case has been referred to the prosecution with a recommendation for indictment, we will temporarily suspend the site selection procedure."
The city explained that, as the allegations of false resident registration have disrupted the implementation of the national policy to ban direct landfilling of combustible municipal waste by 2030, it is also considering filing charges of obstruction of business against those involved.
Gwangju City had been conducting a strategic environmental impact assessment for Samgeo-dong in Gwangsan-gu, which had been selected as the optimal candidate site. However, due to issues related to false resident registration, the subsequent steps, including the community briefing session and public hearing, have been suspended.
Since the Waste Management Act was revised in 2021, the city has been working to install a metropolitan resource recovery facility in consultation with the local district, introducing a public bidding process in consideration of the tendency to avoid environmental infrastructure. After two failed bidding rounds, Samgeo-dong in Gwangsan-gu was selected as the optimal candidate site in the third round, which was conducted under a new process: first, the district would apply, and then the city would proceed with the project. This decision was made in December of last year.
For the third round, the requirement was that more than 50% of household heads living within 300 meters of the site boundary agree to the project. In Samgeo-dong, 48 out of 88 households (54.5%) agreed. However, in May, allegations of false resident registration were raised following complaints and reports from local residents.
The Gwangsan Police Station has referred 12 individuals suspected of violating the Resident Registration Act to the prosecution with a recommendation for indictment. Gwangju City plans to determine whether the candidate site still meets the requirement of "agreement from more than 50% of household heads" after the allegations of false resident registration are confirmed.
Jung Hyun-yoon, Director of the Climate and Environment Bureau, stated, "In accordance with the police's recommendation for indictment, we will temporarily suspend the subsequent procedures and monitor the prosecution's decision. Since the resource recovery facility is a national policy project and an essential facility for citizens' daily lives, we will carefully review the process going forward."
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