Ministry of National Defense Republic of Korea

'THAAD site small-scale environmental impact assessment confirmation conducted on the 10th'       

On August 4th, the Defense Ministry made the following announcement: "We asked the Ministry of Environment, the Daegu Regional Environment Agency, for a small-scale environmental impact assessment on the Sungju base station where the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense System (THAAD) equipment has been deployed.

The Ministry of Environment plans to carry out an on-site confirmation by forming a Joint Field Inspection Team with the related experts as part of the verification of the environmental impact assessment submitted by MND on the 10th of this month, and it will review its appropriateness.“

In order to ensure the fairness and transparency of this small-scale environmental impact assessment, the MND has requested that the Ministry of Environment allow local residents and related organizations to observe the site. As a result, the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of the Environment have requested the cooperation of the local government.

An official with the MND commented, "With regard to the small-scale environmental impact assessment, we are not legally obliged to measure the items that the local residents have observed, but we decided to pursue it considering the concerns regarding the deployment of the THAAD system.“

The MND plans to use this on-site confirmation as an opportunity to resolve residents' environmental concerns and ensure procedural justification for the deployment of the THAAD system.

By Su-Yeol, Maeng <guns13@dema.mil.kr >
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