Designation of World Heritage District Around Jongmyo... Seoul City Criticizes "Impact Assessment Demanded Without Legal or Administrative Basis"

Criticism Over 'Delay by the National Heritage Administration'
in Designating the Jongmyo Area as a World Heritage District

The Seoul Metropolitan Government criticized the National Heritage Administration for designating the area around Seoul Jongmyo Shrine, a UNESCO World Heritage site, as a World Heritage District, stating, "The National Heritage Administration has effectively admitted that it demanded a World Heritage Impact Assessment without first designating the World Heritage District."

Seoul Jongmyo Shrine and Sewoon District 4. Photo by Yonhap News

On November 14, the city released a statement asserting, "Designation of the World Heritage District is essential in order to conduct a World Heritage Impact Assessment." The statement continued, "There are also significant shortcomings regarding the specific scope of projects subject to the assessment, the evaluation criteria, methods, and procedures. As a result, there is no concrete legal or administrative foundation in place to conduct the assessment."

The city further explained, "When a site is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, both a heritage zone and a buffer zone must be established. However, even though more than 30 years have passed since Jongmyo Shrine was inscribed, the buffer zone has yet to be finalized." The city added, "Even the World Heritage District approved at the recent Cultural Heritage Committee meeting includes only the heritage zone, with the essential buffer zone still not designated."

The city also pointed out, "Despite more than nine years of consultation with the Seoul Metropolitan Government and 13 rounds of cultural heritage reviews, the National Heritage Administration has repeatedly postponed the designation of the buffer zone, which serves as the baseline for evaluating the value of the heritage."

The Seoul Metropolitan Government and the National Heritage Administration are currently in conflict over easing height restrictions for the redevelopment of Sewoon District 4, located in front of Jongmyo Shrine.

On October 30, the city announced a change to the maximum building heights in Sewoon District 4, increasing the limits from 55 meters along Jongno and 71.9 meters along Cheonggyecheon to 101 meters along Jongno and 145 meters along Cheonggyecheon. In response, the National Heritage Administration objected, warning that Seoul's refusal to comply with UNESCO's recommendation to conduct a World Heritage Impact Assessment could have negative consequences, including the possible delisting of the site.

The World Heritage Subcommittee of the Cultural Heritage Committee held a meeting the previous day and decided to designate a total of 91 parcels, covering 194,089.6 square meters centered around Jongmyo Shrine, as a World Heritage District. The statement added, "If the buffer zone is expanded or newly designated in the future, the distance to Sewoon Sangga would decrease, likely increasing calls for a World Heritage Impact Assessment."

Until now, the city has maintained that Sewoon District 4, being more than 100 meters away from Jongmyo Shrine, should not be subject to an impact assessment.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.