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The government will allow the public to take back control of some 139 military reservation areas covering 235.83 million sq.m from March. The Joint Chiefs of Staff said Friday they decided to lift military reservation restrictions in 108 areas and ease them from ¡°control¡± to ¡°limited¡± in another 31 to protect the public¡¯s property rights and as part of changes to the military¡¯s operating environment. That is the biggest change in 10 years in terms of the size of land, which is equivalent to 73 times the area of Yeouido, Seoul.
The lifting of restrictions will help residents by doing away with the need for local administrations to consult military units in advance about approval of construction or extension of buildings. Where restrictions have been eased, a ban is being replaced with the need to consult military units for approval.
By region, Gyeonggi Province will benefit most with the affected size of land at some 115.7 million sq.m, followed by Gangwon Province with 42.34 million sq.m, Seoul with 32.37 million sq.m, and Incheon with 20.53 million sq.m. In the case of Gyeonggi, military reservation areas are mostly concentrated in the northern part of the province, so the new measure will help the province develop a new bed town. There are concerns that the lifting of restriction could lead to haphazard development and damage to the environment, especially since local elections due in May will tempt local officials to exploit their sudden freedom for political advantage.
The military plans to designate a total of 9.2 million sq.m as new military reservation areas.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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