[Editorial] Facing Environmental Contamination on U.S. Bases
It has become apparent that there is very serious environmental contamination at fourteen United States military installations set to be returned to us. According to a Ministry of the Environment report last October, soil contamination is so serious that normally land use should have been stopped. Underground water in eight locations were found to be over established contamination levels.
Until now very little has been known about environmental conditions on U.S. installations, because the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) stipulates that even our own government’s documentation on the subject can only be released to the media with the agreement of the U.S. military. Even members of the National Assembly have been permitted only to view the final results of government studies.
The U.S. military is required to inform the Korean government within 48 hours of an environmental accident. But there is no basis for holding U.S. officials responsible when that does not happen, and subsequently it has been common for them to inform our government only long after oil spills and other accidents. That, in turn, makes it hard to even think about preventing the spread of contamination with a rapid response. The situation is such that environmental pollution on U.S. bases has been left entirely for the Americans to clean up.
Our government’s attitude only exacerbates the problem. It has long talked as if it is the U.S. military that has paid most of the costs involved in dealing with contamination, but if you look at the provisions from the negotiations on returning bases, it is we who are about to have to foot most of the bill. Is it that the government was unaware of the provisions, or did it know the details and has been telling a different story all along, hoping to avoid public criticism?
Granted, we are not in a position that is especially disadvantageous regarding the cost of treating contamination if you compare the situation with Germany and other places where there are U.S. military installations. That, however, should not be an excuse for neglecting the problem. Even with a lot of effort it is hard to return nature to its original state once it has been damaged. The government needs to go after the problem of U.S. installations with the mindset that we are not going to pass polluted land on to future generations.
The Hankyoreh, 9 February 2006.
[Translations by Seoul Selection]