S.Korea Canal and River Management Project_Save Rivers News

This message is delivered to the friends of wetlands worldwide whomever I know via e-mail.
And I put this message again with slight revision to SAVE RIVERS and their LIVES.

Friends of the Earth Korea (FOE KFEM) and lots of NGOs in Korea are campainging on the web and on the streets to figure out whether S. Korea goes “GREEN” or “GREY”. Or it will probably turn out "DARK".
Because we just hear lies disguised behind the curtain of discriminating principals.

I am doing campaigns for the conservation of intertidal mudflats and SAVE RIVERS in Korea.
These wetlands are very important habitats for the migratory birds and other species as well as local communities.
Unfortunately lots of them aren’t designated as wetland protected area and/or Ramsar sites.
Unlike the promise pronounced at the Ramsar COP10, Korean government doesn’t consider to designate Ramsar sites as their promise spoken. We only have 20 Ramsar sites!

Even worse, newly launched government is going to develop 4 big rivers with banks, dams, cycle roads, theme parks, waterway construction, etc.
“Reviving 4 River Management” and canal projects are in the rush by Lee M.B.(president) and his people. It's a shame that Ramsar COP10 venue is going to be a symbol of wetland destroyer.
They have revised and will revise Environment Impact Assessment(EIA), lowering its guidelines, so that they can excavate and pave roads even in natural reserve/protected areas, and construction will be proceed much faster, easier, unchecked. All the remaining environmental impact would be left to the wretched and helpless beings as usual.
Lots of Koreans concern that this government should lead Korean society to the past with only construction works and green-painted visions.
Even Ministry of Environment say that current river management project may clean water and prevent flood.

To accomplish this, they even named their projects as “GREEN”; Green New Deal, Green Growth.
But they just gather development projects from local governments regardless of their greenness.
They disguise themselves and pretend to be friends of the nature.
The realities will be sacrifice the of rice-paddies, farmlands, fisheries, national parks, mudflats and mountains on behalf of leisure parks, residential areas, asphalt paved creatures.
(Details will be shown on the SAVE RIVERS campaign blog(En) ASAP.)

S. Korean Government is publicize their projects on the web and on the streets; they exaggerate no living animals could be seen in the Korean rivers.
Last week, they officially campaigned on the web with video clips, even they insert one of the famous photos by American photographer Natalie Fobes to tell people that Korean rives are dead in a exaggerated way(?). After news report about its falsehood, Korean government shut down its blog for a time being.
Feel free to forward this message to Mr. Fobes whoever is acquainted with. He should know what happened with his photo.

And this video clip said:

• Korean Rivers are under quality for human use; lower than 10ppm(BOD)
• Rivers are dead with no living fish
• No natural wetlands exist in- and at- the rivers
• No birds visit Korean wetlands
• And they promise that all these creatures return alive if “Reviving 4 Rivers Management” is done; excavating 4 meters deep in the riverbed and make waterways in a straight way, and banks and dams across the river
  

But the true reports as follows:

• Even the worst river(Yeoungsan river) shows 5ppm(BOD) and the others show much cleaner evidence. Koreans have poured millions and billions dollars into the river.
• The photo was copied from Natalie Fobes and 2,500 salmon was killed by toxics. Though we have toxic pollutions from time to time, we still have lots of fish in the river. Just ask people on the streets whether they fish or not at the river. We have 212 different species in the different river areas. 50 species aren’t be seen in any of the world.
• Rivers themselves are natural wetlands stretching 72,533km long. It’s beyond explanation. Anyone who has visited rivers can see.
• And lots of them are on the migratory routes for cranes, shorebirds, and other birds.
• Lots of migratory birds visit and live in the Korean wetlands; estuaries, rivers, shores, sandy & rocky areas, and wherever they feel safe to breed and feed. Nakdong river itself becomes habitats for 2~4,000 migratory cranes. And estuaries are perfect places for migratory shorebirds on the coastlines.
• To make living creatures flourish in the river, just let it be. And find out the place once river has run through and rehabilitate it.
  
  

Lee M.B administration make their plans known on

webpage and portal sites(http://blog.naver.com/mltm2008, http://blog.daum.net/mltm2008).
If you visit government(Ministry of Land, Transportation, and Maritime Affairs) homepage right now, you can see photos celebrating the launch of “Reviving 4 Rivers Project Team”.

Don’t be relieved that these pages are the only propagation sites for FOUR RIVER MANAGEMENT project. All the other ministries have their own websites and portal pages and blogs, too.

And even ex-politicians, who have joined Lee M.B. presidential election campaign but failed to join the National Assembly member, are actively moving to propel Canal Projects by establishing environmental NGO or institutes through the country. Though the secretary of the Bluehouse denies that they are not involved with those organizations, people knows that they prepare canal projects and propagate to help Mr. President.

So I’d like to get HELP from you and your friends about river, water, wetland management guidelines/information from overseas.

What you can help for SAVE RIVERS in S. Korea:

• If you have a good example of them, I would like to inform Korean people the better way or alternative to these BAD PROJECTS. If you have a bad and catastrophic example, let me know it to prevent Korean disaster.
• I’d like to share the real stories of Korean wetland management under this government, so that you can distribute and put the stories on your web and let it be published in/on any media. Just let me know where you have put these truth. (I have made a blog for English readers just now and it will be filled with true status of S. Korea and linked to informative websites.)
• If you have questions and more information on the blog, let us know to upload.
  And if you have a few seconds, click the followers on the blog page(right) for SAVE RIVERS campaign.
• If you have your own webpage and/or blog that you can receive and copy my news, let me know it on the blog or email.
• And please, distribute this news to the press or release to the readers who shall worry Endangered Wetlands/Rivers in Korea. Or forward us contacts that I and our team could release true stories of Korean wetlands.
• And if you find false stories or exaggerated news about canals and river management projects outside Korea, let me know ASAP.
  
  

Not long ago, you shall see a thorning cartoon by a famous cartoonist which shows the darkening future of Korean rivers. As soon as I translate scripts, I will put it this on the blog.


With best wishes,
Tzan