Waste disposal crisis looming large in Seoul metropolitan area

Trucks are waiting to dump waste on Sudokwon Landfill Site in Incheon in this undated photo. / Courtesy of Sudokwon Landfill Site Management Corp.

By Kim Se-jeong

A waste disposal crisis is looming large in the Seoul metropolitan area for 2025 as Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province struggle to find alternative landfill sites that can replace the current one, according to environmental engineering experts.

In 2015, Seoul and Incheon cities, Gyeonggi Province and the Ministry of Environment set out to find a site to replace the current Sudokwon Landfill Site (SLS) which many claim is the world's largest.

Opened in 1992, it receives an average of 12,000 tons of garbage daily, mostly home- and construction-related waste from Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province where half the country's population lives. Years of meetings have been fruitless and a look into these reveals the complexity of waste management issues in Korea and conflicts of interest.

A map of Sudokwon Landfill Site

The SLS covers 14.83 square kilometers of land in Incheon near the west coast. Of that, 8.9 square kilometers ― the 1st, 2nd and parts of the 3rd landfill site ― have either been used up or becoming close to filled. By August 2025, it's projected that all 8.9 square kilometers will be full. Yet, the remaining 5.93 square kilometers will not be available immediately without a permit from Incheon Metropolitan Government. But the city government has vowed not to issue such permission.

"Incheon has been the host of the unpleasant site for more than 20 years. We've had residents nearby the site lose their businesses and their health because of the negative effects from the site. We no longer want this site in Incheon. The landfill site should be closed down and each government should find their own solution within their own jurisdiction," an Incheon official said.

This has been the mantra for Incheon from the beginning of the talks and the city representatives have been quite vocal about finding a replacement site outside the city's jurisdiction as soon as possible.

Although sympathetic with Incheon, Seoul and Gyeonggi Province don't want to do this as finding their own landfill sites will be a huge headache for them. Instead they want to keep the current site open as long as possible.

There's another reason why they are passive in attempts to find a new site. During one of the first meetings in 2015 where all agreed to find a new location, they also agreed on an exceptional clause that if no progress was made, the SLS could be expanded.

"This issue is very political. People don't want the landfill site in their backyards because this means decreasing property prices. And elected officials from the affected region play on this to win votes," said Lee Dong-hoon, a professor at the University of Seoul. "There's nothing else involved in this problem. A political decision has to be made to solve it."

Korea's rapid development came with an increasing amount of waste. According to statistics from the Korea Environment Technology Development Institute, the total amount of municipal solid waste generated per day increased from 12,000 tons in 1970 to 84,000 tons in 1990. This brought about a host of issues, including Not-In-My-Back-Yard (NIMBY) movements.

Experts said if the talks continue to fail, they could trigger a waste crisis in 2025.

Cities plan open contest to select site

During a meeting in August, however, officials agreed to do something different: running an open contest for the site selection.

"We don't want to press Incheon. We are doing whatever we can to find a solution that would also make Incheon happy," a ministry official said. "We are optimistic we can find a solution with this plan. We will offer a large financial incentive for the new host."

The ministry is looking into the example of Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, which chose the city's next landfill site through a public contest. "Despite many ups and downs, we chose a site and are now preparing it," a Cheongju official said.

Waste management expert Hong Soo-youl is against the idea.

"First, I can guarantee that they will have no candidate," Hong said. "No one wants a landfill site as big as the SLS in their backyards. This is not a solution. It is moving the problem from one place to another." Also, he said finding one single site that would be as large as the SLS near the Seoul metropolitan area would be next to impossible.

Oh Gil-jong, another waste management expert, didn't like the idea either.

Oh suggested the government use the financial resources to compensate Incheon residents affected by the landfill so that Incheon city government will issue the permit. At the same time, it urged the government to increase its number of incinerators to reduce the amount of waste arriving at the SLS.

"This will be the most feasible option," Oh said.

Incineration produces ash that needs to be buried, but makes a significant contribution to reducing the amount of waste in general. Also, compared to landfill sites, incinerators produce a lot less greenhouse gases.

However, installing incinerators also faces a backlash from local residents.

"The government sees a future in building more incinerators. And we will have to find ways to make these sites attractive. We are looking at Amager Bakke in Denmark as an example."

Located in Copenhagen, Amager Bakke incinerates waste and produces power from the heat. The building's sloping roof is also used as an artificial ski slope, hiking slope and climbing wall.