Over the past decade in Korea, flooding due to heavy rainfall has been responsible for the majority of natural disaster damages. With climate change expected to intensify these rainfall events, there is a pressing need to implement measures to reduce flood damage. Specifically, the Gangnam Station area in Seoul experienced severe flooding in 2022, yet effective policy and physical measures to combat such flooding remain insufficient.
HIGHLIGHTS
Over the past decade in Korea, flooding due to heavy rainfall has been responsible for the majority of natural disaster damages. With climate change expected to intensify these rainfall events, there is a pressing need to implement measures to reduce flood damage. Specifically, the Gangnam Station area in Seoul experienced severe flooding in 2022, yet effective policy and physical measures to combat such flooding remain insufficient.
The '1st Han River Basin Water Management Comprehensive Plan' was recently introduced as a policy measure. Additionally, the Urban Flood Prevention Act has entered enforcement, accompanied by a 10-year basic and implementation plan for urban flood measures. As a physical countermeasure, plans are underway to construct a deep underground rainwater tunnel in the Gangnam Station area.
However, policy measures currently do not adequately support physical measures, and the options for physical measures are constrained by the lack of clear alternatives to the deep underground rainwater tunnel. Additionally, there is no established legal framework for the installation, operation, and management of the rainwater tunnel. A related legislative proposal, titled the “Deep Underground Special Act (tentative title),” is still under review by a subcommittee of the National Assembly. Moreover, the completion of the deep underground rainwater tunnel, originally scheduled for 2027, has been delayed until 2029 due to administrative procedures and project bidding processes. Despite these delays, concerns about environmental pollution and cost inefficiency persist, yet no viable alternatives have been proposed.
In this issue brief, we recommend the following actions: 1) the Ministry of Environment should expedite the development of a 10-year master plan for reducing flood damage; 2) the National Assembly should initiate discussions on a bill aimed at strengthening policy support for the rainwater tunnel; and 3) the Seoul Metropolitan Government must highlight the importance of developing alternatives to the rainwater tunnel to manage heavy rainfall.