With trees being cut at the planned Yongin semiconductor national industrial complex, citizen and environmental groups held an on-site press conference on the 20th demanding that felling and early works stop until social conflicts are resolved. A groundbreaking ceremony is set for the 28th.
According to the Kyunghyang Shinmun, chainsaws and excavators were at work on the 20th on a hillside near Hwagok Reservoir in Namsa-eup, Cheoin-gu, Yongin, where signs barred entry because of the logging. The developer, LH, has set the groundbreaking for the 28th and has been doing preparatory work including felling since September, the paper said.
광고 문의 · 300×250The complex spans about 7.78 million square meters (2.35 million pyeong) across Idong-eup and Namsa-eup. Plans call for six Samsung Electronics fabs, materials and equipment firms, and three power facilities. The Kyunghyang Shinmun said Samsung moved the start of its first fab up by one to two years to 2029, and LH aims to prepare the land so fab construction can begin in 2028.
What the groups say
A national action group seeking review of the complex and opposing ultra-high-voltage towers held a press conference at the Biryong village hall in Idong-eup on the 20th. According to the Incheon Ilbo, they argued that the preliminary feasibility study was waived, the water-source protection zone lifted, and permitting, environmental and climate assessments reduced to formalities, and that the project was announced without reviewing large-scale power and water supply.
The Gyeonggi Environmental Movement Association estimated about 200,000 trees will be lost, and its secretary-general said the complex could emit nearly 10 million tonnes of greenhouse gases a year. These are the groups’ own estimates; no independent verification by the government or LH was confirmed in the coverage.
Power, relocation and the government side
The complex needs 10 GW of power. The Kyunghyang Shinmun reported that the government plans to bring 7 GW in through external transmission lines and cover the other 3 GW with an LNG plant. Eighty-nine companies on the site must relocate, the project area grew by about 500,000 square meters after approval and an environmental re-consultation is under way, and a lawsuit over the approval’s legality continues.
Responses from the government and LH were not confirmed in this coverage. Newsis reported in January that a court upheld the approval of the Yongin cluster plan and rejected the environmental groups’ claim. The groups say their objection is to process and speed rather than the project’s necessity, and they call for review of alternatives and disclosure of the screening materials.