South Korea – OVERVIEW & COMMENTARY by Dr. Glen Barry, Forests.org
Victory: Court Rules in Favor of the Saemangeum Wetland, South Korea
Saemangeum is one of the world's most valuable natural areas, and is generally accepted to be the most important site for shorebirds in the Yellow Sea.  It is a wildlife habitat that supports 158 species of fish, or 76.9 percent of all fish species in the Yellow Sea, with over 300 aquatic and plant species.  In addition, it is a major stopover point for 20,000 birds that annually migrate from Australia to East Asia.  During any given year, however, more than 500,000 birds may be found there, including 105-110 annually; 70-75 are present in smaller numbers, and 30 of those are present in internationally important numbers.- more than any other site in Korea.  Instead of continuing the largest tidal flat reclamation project in the world, and worsening the irreversible destruction of such an ecosystem, I urge you to preserve the remaining land by joining it to the already existing Pyonsan-Bando National Park.

Today a court in Seoul, South Korea ruled that the Saemangeum Reclamation Project - which would destroy one of the most important wetlands in East Asia - must be halted immediately and be fully re-evaluated. This is a major victory for South Korean environmental sustainability, which Forests.org and you supported in no small way - as we generated many thousands of protest emails on the request of local organizers. The ill-conceived project intended to construct a 33-km long seawall, closing off 40,100 ha of tidal-flats and sea shallows for conversion to agriculture and a 17,000 ha reservoir for irrigation purposes. Saemangeum tidal flat provides important habitat for marine fisheries and migratory birds.
The Saemangeum reclamation project which has already commenced was to be the largest known coastal reclamation project in the world. The project has been the focus of intense criticism and opposition for a number of years, both locally and internationally. The Court clearly recognised the immense and irreversible damage that would be done to the tidal-flat system by the reclamation. Our partner Birds Korea is now calling for the government to officially halt the project – information on taking part in their campaign is included below. Forests.org intends to soon re-issue a supportive alert on the matter. Congratulations to all that participated in this monumental victory – yet there are more actions to be done on behalf of the Earth at http://forests.org/action/ .