Nowadays, there are some people who have smelled a bad odor in downtown Cheong-ju. According to the Heungdeok-gu Office, the main reason of the stench is polluted air and water from the factories in the industrial complex near the apartments of G-well City. Since the factories in the industrial complex are manufacturing companies, a large amount of wastewater and raw materials used in the factories flows into the sewer pipes, so especially in dry seasons, a stench occurs in the sewer pipes. Moreover, bad smells from chemical materials used in manufacturing spread through the atmosphere and make a stench. According to the person in charge from the Heungdeok-gu Office, although the factories have installed facilities for prevention of air pollution, it is impossible to remove the stench completely because it is influenced by wind and atmospheric pressure.
  Because the stench has been a problem, Cheong-ju city is taking some actions to remove it. The Sewer Policy Department in the Environment Management Office of the Cheong-ju City Hall has installed some facilities such as a river pollutants treatment facility and raw material water treatment equipment. The Heungdeok-gu Office is in charge of removing contamination; a staff member working in the Heungdeok-gu Office’s Environment Hygiene Department said, “While we work, we can smell the stench directly. We’re had regular discussions and check-ups about the main source of the stench: the factories. We visited there and checked if there was a certain smell at that time. Moreover, we received stench reduction plans from the factories and we are discussing whether to proceed or not.”
  According to a staffer from the Heungdeok-gu Office, not only Cheong-ju city’s regional features but also institutional defects have aggravated the situation. The staff member from the Environmental Policy Department said,  “There are limitations to improve and rectify facilities for decontamination. Aside from regular check-ups, there has been little immediate improvement and insufficient management under the Malodor Prevention Act. It is thought to be easy to remove stenches, but there is a limitation for their complete removal.”
  Nowadays, the provincial government’s Environmental Policy Department is operating inspections and making guidance plans for the industrial complex, and City Hall is enforcing many policies to root out the problem. Therefore, the number of civil complaints has remarkably decreased, and the residents testified that the stench has decreased a lot. Min Kwan-hong(’13, Dept. of Information Statistics), a resident who lives near G-well City, said,  “I think that I have never smelt a stench near the G-well City recently. In the past, there was a bad smell, but these days it’s quite better.” From now on, Cheong-ju City Hall will be watched by citizens on whether or not they enforce the policy to alleviate the discomfort of citizens and show them positive changes consistently.

By Yoo Jin-kyu
jk37@cbnu.ac.kr