- Declaration: "Stop the outdated river management that destroys habitats of endangered species"

On the 28th, the Jeonbuk Environmental Movement Union strongly condemned the Jeonju City for completely removing the reeds and water foxtail in the Hanbyeokdang section of the Jeonju Stream, labeling it as "outdated river management administration that damages habitats of endangered species."

According to the organization, on that day, Jeonju City indiscriminately cleared the reed and water foxtail colonies in the Hanbyeokdang area, which is considered the highest grade in the ecological habitat evaluation during the afternoon when a heatwave warning was issued.

The Hanbyeokdang section of the Jeonju Stream is evaluated as a well-preserved natural area with Dalppupul, water foxtail, and birch trees coexisting with whirlpools, deep pools, sandbars, and gravel bars, forming the main ecological axis of the Jeonju Stream. This place is a crucial ecological space where natural monuments such as otters and mandarin ducks, endangered species like the yellow bittern and Eurasian bittern, and Korea's native species, the shiri, inhabit stably. It is also a symbolic space of the Jeonju Stream that harmonizes with the landscape of the Hanok village, connected to the forests on the slopes of Seungamsan.

The environmental group pointed out, "Despite the controversy caused by excessive dredging and indiscriminate weeding operations that spread sand and gravel and damaged reeds and trees in the same area in the winter of 2023, Jeonju City repeated the same mistake at a time when the ecosystem was recovering."

In May of this year, Jeonju City halted the removal of water foxtail and reeds in the Namcheon Bridge area during the holidays due to public protests. At that time, Jeonju City promised the Jeonju Ecological Stream Council to minimize the damage to wildlife habitats by managing only some parts of the walking trails for the convenience of citizens. However, criticism arose that this action made that promise meaningless.

The Jeonbuk Environmental Movement Union also criticized the Jeonbuk Regional Environmental Office for being responsible for this issue as the downtown section of the Jeonju Stream has been upgraded to a national river. The organization criticized, "Although it may be a small-scale project, this weeding operation is an extension of Jeonju City's misguided river management policy, destroying biodiversity and wasting budgets as an outdated administration."