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The Supreme Court on Thursday gave the green light to a resumption of the much-delayed Saemangeum Reclamation Project. The full bench with a majority of 11 to two upheld a lower court ruling against an appeal by environmental groups and local residents who wanted the project scrapped.
The bench found no flaws in the original permission for the massive land reclamation project given by the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry, while a string of viability, environmental impact and water quality studies showed the project was well above board. ¡°There is no change in the situation that would justify demands for the minister to cancel his decision,¡± the majority judges said.
However, four majority judges added a lacuna saying while the administrative measure by the minister is lawful, the ruling is not to be ¡°interpreted as a policy assessment of the project¡¯s validity.¡± They exhorted the government to ¡°put greater effort into continuously reviewing the project to ensure that it truly contributes to the nation¡¯s economic development and becomes more environmentally friendly.¡±
Dissenting judges Kim Young-ran and Park Si-hwan in their opinion said the Constitution and environmental laws place preservation of the natural environment above economic development. ¡°The project needs to be stopped in view of the potential environmental catastrophe if the quality of the freshwater lake created by the project falls below standards,¡± they said.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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