Tag: Gimcheon

Gimcheon Residents Opposed to Deployment of THAAD to Lotte Sky Hill Golf Resort

Just as I predicted the Not In My Backyard (NIMBY) complaints if the THAAD location does move would just shift from one location to another:

The Ministry of National Defense said it will begin to evaluate candidate locations which are being mentioned for an alternative site for THAAD as soon as possible. Candidate sites being mentioned include a country club owned by Lotte Group located in Chojeon Township of the county, Mt. Yeomsok in Geumsu Township and Mt. Kkachi in Suryun Township.

The ministry’s acceptance of the county’s request seems to have resolved the mounting conflict in Seongju to some extent, but at the same time is causing fresh protests from residents living in Gimcheon County as residents there are close to the Lotte Skyhill Country Club, which has been mentioned as the most prominent alternative site.

The Lotte golf club has emerged as an alternative location to host THAAD as it is located at an altitude of 680 meters above sea level, which is higher than the Seongsan artillery unit, located at an altitude of 380 meters. The golf course is also located 18 kilometers away from any residential areas, while the Seongsan artillery unit is only 1.5 kilometers away. Those conditions seem to be better to resolve controversy over the safety of the radar.

Right after Kim’s news conference, Gimcheon residents formed a protest committee that is planning to stage a large-scale rally Wednesday with around 10,000 residents.

Gimcheon City Council also issued a statement, saying, “The Lotte golf club is very close to Gimcheon, which means Gimcheon will suffer the damage of the THAAD deployment. We are opposed to the deployment at the golf club.” [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link, but the Sky Hill Golf Resort is not 18 kilometers from residential areas.  On Google Earth I measure downtown Gimcheon as being 7 kilometers away from the golf resort and smaller villages outside of the city are even closer.

The article also discusses the other point I brought up earlier this week in regards to the need to purchase private land from the Lotte Group.  It seems to me to get this system deployed as quickly as possible leasing the land would be the fastest solution until a longer term agreement can be reached.

Will Relocating THAAD Just Move NIMBY Complaints to Another City In South Korea?

For the residents of Seongju they will need to decide if they still care about the THAAD deployment if its moved to the alternate site that is no longer in their backyard:

Residents of Seongju county in North Gyeongsang Province are reviewing an alternative location for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery at the county office, Saturday. / Yonhap
Residents of Seongju county in North Gyeongsang Province are reviewing an alternative location for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery at the county office, Saturday. / Yonhap

Residents living near a government-chosen site for a U.S. anti-missile system failed Saturday to discuss whether to review an alternative location due to opponents’ protest.

Residents of the southern county of Seongju held a meeting to discuss whether they can consider picking an alternative site for the government’s move to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) inside the county.

But they failed to reach a consensus over whether to review the alternative location as some of them insisted that the government should scrap its plan to deploy a THAAD battery on their county. [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link, but here is a Google Earth image I put together that shows the two proposed THAAD locations:

As the image shows the problems with the THAAD deployment moves from Seongju’s backyard to Gimcheon’s.  So will the people of Gimcheon now complain about the deployment?  I guess time will tell, but that is the problem with THAAD in South Korea it will always be radiating over someones backyard.

One thing for sure is that the cost of the deployment of THAAD is going to skyrocket by having to purchase or lease the Lotte Sky Hill Golf Resort land from the Lotte corporation compared to deploying the THAAD on government owned ROK Air Force land at the first THAAD site outside of Seongju.