Minister Kim Seong-hwan of the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment visited the Seomjin River Dam ahead of the start of flood season to review flood-season operation plans. The Seomjin River Dam plans to secure about 300 million tons of flood control capacity in advance to minimize flood damage in downstream areas.
The ministry said Minister Kim will begin at the Seomjin River Dam in Imsil, North Jeolla, on the 17th and sequentially visit the Seomjin River Flood Control Branch Office in Namwon, the Chimsil Wetland in Gokseong, the confluence of the Seomjin and Boseong rivers, the Otter Ecological Park in Gurye, and Hadong Songnim Park, before continuing to the Baeraldo Riverside Park in Gwangyang, South Jeolla, covering the entire Seomjin River section.
The Seomjin River Dam is the nation's first multipurpose dam, built in 1965. At the site, the Minister received briefings on the status of water supply and water quality management, flood-season operations from June 21 to Sept. 20, and responses to algal blooms. The Minister asked related agencies, including the Yeongsan River Flood Control Office, the Korea Water Resources Corporation (K-water), Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP), and the Korea Rural Community Corporation (KRC), to establish a prompt response system linking dams, agricultural reservoirs, and rivers.
At the Seomjin River Flood Control Branch Office in Namwon, comprehensive readiness was ordered to prevent a recurrence of flooding in the Seomjin River basin, where damage from torrential rain in Aug. 2020 totaled 400.8 billion won and eight people were killed, and on-site staff were encouraged.
Minister Kim said, "The Seomjin River has the healthiest aquatic ecosystem among the five major rivers," and added, "To create a sustainable Seomjin River where nature and people coexist, we will strengthen integrated watershed management."