ABOUT PEMSEA> PEMSEA SITE: Demonstration
SHIHWA, RO KOREA

Shihwa Lake is an artificial lake located on the west coast of Seoul, Republic of Korea. It was formed in 1994, when a dike was built as part of a large-scale Reclamation and Infilling Project of Shihwa. Before the reclamation project, the area was a long stretch of tidal mudflat. The original purpose of the reclamation was to convert the tidal flat into farmland and a freshwater reservoir for irrigation. After the closing of the lake, however, the water quality rapidly degraded, and became unfit even for irrigation.

In order to address the environmental problem of Shihwa, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (MOMAF) designated Shihwa Lake and its coastal area as a special management area and developed an action plan for Shihwa environmental management. The implementation of this action plan will be done through partnership with all the local government units and civil society in an integrated approach.

With the signing of the Memorandum of Arrangement among IMO (PEMSEA), MOMAF and the governments of Kyonggi Province, Ansan City, Siheung City and Hwasung City on 15 March 2001, the Shihwa Lake coastal area is identified as an ICM parallel site under PEMSEA. At the same time, national and local stakeholders signed the "Shihwa Declaration on Sustainable Coastal Use and Environmental Protection" signifying intergovernmental and interagency partnerships to promote and enhance sustainable development of the Shihwa Lake coastal area.

Contact Persons:

Mr. Woo, Dong-Sik
Director of Marine Environment Policy Team
Marine Environment Planning Office
Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries
140-2 Gye-Dong, Jongno-Gu, Seoul, 110-793
Republic of Korea
Tel: +82 2 3674-6540
Fax: +82 2 3674-6546