Fredag starter Vinter-OL i Pyeongchang, Sydkorea. Arrangørerne lover, at det bliver den mest øko-venlige version af den store sportsbegivenhed nogensinde.
Det er dog ikke alle, der kan genkende den fortælling.
En sammenslutning af koreanske organisationer har sendt en pressemeddelelse med budskabet om, at værtsbyen fungerer som magnet for kulkraft.
Organisationerne tæller bl.a. Friends of the Earth Korea og Koreas Grønne Parti.
Følgende er en pressemeddelelse, vi har modtaget, og under den kan man læse kommentarer fra talsmænd.
PyeongChang, Gangwon Province, February 5, 2018 – The upcoming PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games has boasted that it will be the most eco-friendly sports event ever, according to organizers[1]. Putting aside the green credentials of the event itself, local communities and environmental groups are highlighting the hypocrisy of a “green” slogan given four new coal-fired power stations are planned for the surrounding province.
“We are absolutely furious,” Lee Yong-woo, Samcheok native said. “They have been promoting PyeongChang as the venue for the eco-friendly Olympics, but behind the scenes, they have been pushing forward the plan to construct four more coal-fired power plants in Gangwon Province.”
Four-newly built coal-fired power plants in the Olympics host province have recently gone online, already causing various health and environmental problems, and if another four are constructed as planned in the region, they will devastate people’s lives, especially the old and weak, the 62-year-old said. “This is deception, under the slogan of green Olympics.”
Environmentalists also argued that allegedly “green” Olympics would do little for the people who live in the region where the event is held.
“Even if they do successfully host a green event, what does that mean to people who will suffer from various environmental and health problems for decades,” said Lee Jieon, climate and energy coordinator of the Korea Federation for Environmental Movements.
Controversy
The Moon Jae-in administration has pledged to phase out conventional energy sources such as coal and nuclear from the energy mix and transit to renewables, increasing the target for its share to 20 percent by 2030[2]. Currently, renewable energy accounts for just 2 percent of the electricity production, with coal-fired and nuclear plants generating about 40 percent and 30 percent, respectively.
It seems that the government sees PyeongChang as a chance to confidently show it is moving in a right direction to fight climate change. Organizers say that the goal is to make the games responsible for carbon emissions and in the process release zero emissions[3]. They will also make sure to be transparent by publishing necessary information such as carbon offsets, greenhouse gas emissions, air and water quality.
However, such efforts to seek sustainability seem meaningless to locals, who have to struggle with various problems from the 4,180MW-scale power plants built newly in the province by 2023 -two each in Samcheok and Gangneung.
Citizens have also voiced their concerns that coal-power plants will destroy the real beauty of the province, often dubbed as “Korea’s Alps” for its beautiful mountains and rivers. They have been engaged in lawsuits[4] to demand the cancellation of the plan to build more coal-fired power plants in the region.
“What worries me most is that the government will hurriedly proceed with the plan to construct new power plants here, after the Olympics ends in March, when no one would pay attention to the greenness of PyeongChang and its neighboring regions,” said Kim Joong-nam, president of the Association of Gangneung Citizens against Coal.
Kim said the new power plants will also severely damage local economy which highly depends on tourism industry. “Who would want to visit the region for tourism, which suffers from serious air pollution?”
Overall, South Korea lags behind other countries in terms of efforts to phase out coal. Due to the planned coal plants, the share of coal in the country’s energy mix will stay high, with 36 percent in 2030[5], which is surely against the country’s pledges to reduce climate-changing emissions under the Paris agreement.
South Korea not only build new coal power plants on its own soil but also bankroll coal projects in other countries such as Vietnam and India. According to recent reports, South Korea is third in the world, following Japan and China, in terms of public finance for fossil fuels[6].
“The Moon Jae-in administration has pledged to phase out coal, but most new coal-fired power plant construction projects are still underway without changes in plan,” said Kim Joojin, managing director of Solutions for Our Climate. “State-run banks have been actively financing several overseas coal power projects.”
For truly sustainable event
Environmentalists and locals demand that the government can, and should, be more aggressive on its vision with the energy transition, arguing that PyeongChang can be the true starting point.
“Gangwon Province where PyeongChang Olympics will take place has ironically become a mecca for coal-fired power plants. The government should abandon its plan to build four more coal-fired power plants in the province, in order to cope with climate change, fight the fine-dust problem in the country, and transit to renewables,” said Kim Juon, co-convenor of Green Party Korea.
Environmental groups and local communities have formed an alliance, called “Anti-coal Alliance of Korea,” to leverage PyeongChang to demand the government come up with more aggressive plans for the energy transition, as the world’s attention turns to the green games.
Yongwoo LEE, 62, Samcheok native (Samcheok is a neighboring city of PyeongChang in Gangwon Province.)
“We are absolutely furious. They have been promoting PyeongChang as the venue for the eco-friendly Olympics, but behind the scene, they have pushing forward the plan to construct four more coal-fired power plants here in Gangwon Province, the very region where the event will be held. Four-newly built coal-fired power plants have already caused a lot of health problems, polluting the air, and if another four new plants are constructed in the region, they will devastate our lives, especially the old and weak. They are deceiving people under the slogan of green Olympics.”
Joongnam KIM, citizen of Gangneung, president of the Association of Gangneung Citizens against Coal (Gangneung is a neighboring city of PyeongChang in Gangwon Province.)
“What worries me most is that the government will hurriedly proceed with the plan to construct four new power plants here, after the Olympics ends in March, when no one would really pay attention to the greenness of PyeongChang and its neighboring regions in Gangwon Province. The four new power plants will not only damage people’s health but also local economy which highly depends on tourism industry. Who would want to visit the region for tourism, which suffers from serious air pollution? The plan must be revised and the government should listen to people’s concerns.”
Ji-eon LEE, climate and energy coordinator of the Korea Federation for Environmental Movements and Friends of the Earth Korea
“The government has pushed forward with the plan to construct four more coal-fired power plants in the very region where they’re hosting the allegedly greenest games. Even if they do successfully host a green event, what does that mean to people who will suffer from various environmental and health problems for decades, resulting from the new coal power plants there.”
Joojin KIM, managing director of Solutions for Our Climate
“The Moon Jae-in administration has pledged to phase out coal, but most new coal-fired power plant construction projects are still underway without changes in plan, including four units nearby PyeongChang, and state-run banks have been actively financing several overseas coal power projects. The government should use the PyeongChang Olympics as an opportunity to show its will to keep its promise.”
Ju-on Kim, Leader of Green Party Korea
“Gangwon Province, where PyeongChang Olympics will take place, has ironically become a mecca for coal-fired power plants. The government should abandon its plan to build four more coal-fired power plants in the province, in order to cope with climate change, fight the fine-dust problem in the country, and transit to renewables. It is a deceptive act to build more coal power plants in Gangwon Province, as they promote PyeongChang Olympics as the greenest games ever.”
