On the 23rd, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety decided that the jurisdictional local government for the 'Saemangeum Smart Waterfront City' reclamation site would be Gimje City in Jeollabuk-do Special Self-Governing Province.
The Saemangeum Smart Waterfront City reclamation site covers an area of 6,601,669 square meters and was created to attract population and industry to Saemangeum, enhancing private sector participation and investment attraction.
Last January, the head of the Gunsan Regional Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Office submitted a request for the jurisdictional decision regarding the reclamation site, prompting the Central Dispute Mediation Committee to gather opinions from relevant parties such as the Saemangeum Development Corporation, Gunsan City, Gimje City, and Buan County, and to hold discussions.
The Central Dispute Mediation Committee reviewed the considerations for the jurisdictional decision of the reclamation site presented in previous Supreme Court rulings, including the overall jurisdictional structure and efficient use of the reclamation area, adjacency to nearby areas, natural terrain and artificial structure locations, administrative efficiency, and the convenience of residents. Consequently, it finalized its decision to designate Gimje City as the jurisdiction.
According to the Local Government Act, the reclamation site jurisdiction decision procedure begins upon the application of the reclamation licensing authority or related local government heads. If there are no objections to the application, the Minister decides based on the application details; however, if there are disagreements among local governments, the decision is made after deliberation and resolution by the Central Dispute Mediation Committee. In the future, once the Ministry of the Interior and Safety notifies the local governments of the decision, the local governments will conduct a reclamation completion inspection and register and manage it in the land register.
Amid ongoing jurisdictional disputes in the Saemangeum area, the Central Dispute Mediation Committee continues to side with Gimje City. Earlier, the committee designated the 'Saemangeum Mangyeong 7 District shared water surface reclamation site' to Gimje City in August of last year, and in February, it also designated the jurisdictional local government for the 'Saemangeum Dongsuh Road' to Gimje City.
Meanwhile, following this decision, Gunsan City and Buan County announced plans to file an administrative lawsuit. Local governments that have objections to the decision can file a lawsuit with the Supreme Court within 15 days of receiving the notice of the decision. Representatives from Gunsan City and Buan County stated, "We oppose this Central Dispute Mediation Committee decision" and noted, "We are considering filing an administrative lawsuit with the Supreme Court."