Disquiet as S. Korea moves to raise nuclear power

“The cows are a bit bad. There have been miscarriages, who knows why. Even if I try to sell my house and go, no one will buy.”

Kim Jin-sun

SEOUL: Hwang Bun-hee, 74, lives in a pink house near the sea surrounded by a riotous vegetable garden and sounds of birds – but she gets upset whenever she looks at her house, just a few minutes’ walk from the Wolsong nuclear power plant.

“When I first came here in 1986, there was just one reactor. Now there are five,” Hwang said. “The worst thing is I can’t sell my property when I want to move.”

South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol, who took office in May, is pushing for nuclear power to overtake coal as the main source of electricity to help meet the country’s climate targets and strengthen energy security.

The government wants to increase nuclear energy’s share of the nation’s power mix to 33% by 2030 from 27% currently.

Seoul has also highlighted Europe’s energy crisis following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow calls a “special military operation”, as a wake-up call to bolster domestic sources of power.

The government is proposing an additional six nuclear plants by 2036 on top of the current 24 reactors in a country the size of the US state of Indiana, raising deep concerns among hundreds of South Korean residents living in the most densely built area in the world for nuclear power.

The 24 reactors, capable of generating 23,250 megawatts, are concentrated in four locations – five to seven reactors per one location – with some five million people living within 30 kms of the plants, according to 2019 data compiled by opposition lawmaker Wi Seong-gon.

Nuclear experts said South Korea’s clustered reactors don’t pose safety concerns, but some residents are unconvinced.

“The cows are a bit bad. There have been miscarriages, who knows why,” said Kim Jinsun, a 75-year-old livestock owner living near Wolsong.

“Even if I try to sell my house or rice field and go somewhere else, no one will buy.”

While many South Koreans support expanding nuclear power, a significant minority are urging a reduction.

A June 28-30 survey of 1,000 South Koreans by Gallup Korea showed 39% supported expansion of nuclear energy, 30% wanted current levels to be maintained, while 18% called for scaling it back.