Construction of two new public wastewater treatment facilities in Inje-gun, Gangwon Province — the Nammyeon Integrated Wastewater Treatment Plant and the Sangnam 2 Public Wastewater Treatment Plant — has been completed, with a combined project cost of 65.3 billion won ($44.1 million).
The Korea Environment Corporation and Inje-gun jointly pursued the projects to protect water quality in local streams and improve public health and sanitation for residents. A formal handover from the Korea Environment Corporation to the county is scheduled for August.
Parts of Inje-gun had long faced concerns over water pollution in local waterways caused by wastewater from residential homes and military installations, threatening the area's standing as one of the country's premier clean-water zones.
With both facilities now entering full operation, the county can fundamentally prevent water pollution in major streams and provide residents with a significantly cleaner living environment.
The Nammyeon Integrated Wastewater Treatment Plant, built on a site in Bupyeong-ri, Nammyeon, received a total project investment of 43.58 billion won — comprising 27.15 billion won in national government funds, 7.37 billion won from a watershed fund, 1.98 billion won in provincial funds and 7.07 billion won in county funds.
The Bupyeong-ri facility can process 2,700 cubic meters of wastewater per day and was built alongside 27.03 kilometers of sewage pipelines, 17 manhole pump stations and drainage connections to 239 households.
Ground was broken in April 2023, and construction was completed in June this year after 39 months of work. A comprehensive trial run conducted from January through April this year was completed successfully. The facility cleared a county management plan revision, a building use permit and registration in the Facility Management System in July, and the final handover is set for August.
The Sangnam 2 Public Wastewater Treatment Plant, located in Sangnam-ri and Misan-ri in Sangnam-myeon, had a total project cost of 21.75 billion won, funded by 13.52 billion won in national government funds, 3.48 billion won from a watershed fund, 1.05 billion won in provincial funds and 3.69 billion won in county funds.
The facility has a daily treatment capacity of 1,100 cubic meters and includes 5.90 kilometers of sewage pipelines, five manhole pump stations and drainage connections to 42 households. Ground was broken in April 2023, and the facility was completed in January this year. After a county management plan revision and building use permit were finalized in May, the plant has been operating stably through a contracted operator. The Sangnam 2 facility is also set to be transferred from the Korea Environment Corporation to county management in August.
Kim Sang-gil, head of Inje-gun's sewage facility team, said the long-awaited construction of public wastewater treatment plants in the Nammyeon and Sangnam areas was nearing completion. "We will complete the handover procedures without a hitch by August and protect Inje's clean water environment through thorough facility management," he said.
abc@heraldcorp.com
