PPP lawmaker calls for action on Seokpo smelter relocation

People Power Party lawmaker Jin Jong-oh urged authorities to take action on issues surrounding the relocation of the Seokpo smelter in Bonghwa.

Jin raised questions about the progress and plans for the smelter's relocation during the National Assembly's Administrative Affairs and Security Committee national audit of North Gyeongsang Province, held Tuesday morning at the provincial government office.

Jin said the province had formed a TF and commissioned a research study on the Seokpo smelter amid ongoing concerns about environmental pollution, but questioned why the original scope — described as a "feasibility study on relocation" — had been changed to a "review of a coexistence strategy."

He said the initial research report, released May 26, 2025, had framed the work as a relocation feasibility study, but the final report issued Sept. 21 softened the language to a "sustainable coexistence strategy."

North Gyeongsang Province Governor Lee Cheol-woo said he agreed on the need to relocate the smelter but that local conditions and economic factors would need to be weighed comprehensively.

"The smelter was there because there were mines, but now the mines are mostly gone and zinc is imported for smelting, so moving it to a coastal location makes sense," Lee said. "There are limits to what the province can do on its own — a comprehensive national-level response is needed."