[SPOTLIGHT]25/09/01 South Korean clergy seek cancellation of proposed airport

[성기화 요셉]

The project will harm Saemangeum wetland, endangering migratory birds and fishermen’s livelihoods, says priest

Korean Catholic priests arrive for a Holy Mass organized in front of the Presidential Office in Seoul on Sept. 1 while holding placards expressing their opposition to a new airport in the Saemangeum Wetland area. (Photo: catholictimes.org)

By UCA News reporter

Published: September 03, 2025 11:49 AM GMT

Updated: September 03, 2025 01:11 PM GMT

A Catholic priests’ association in South Korea has urged the government to scrap a proposed airport project near the Saemangeum wetland, saying it is destroying the environment and people’s livelihoods.

The Catholic Priests´ Association for Justice (CPAJ) offered a Mass on Sept. 1 in front of the presidential office in the national capital, Seoul, expressing their opposition to the Saemangeum International Airport.

The Mass was organized ahead of a court verdict after final arguments were heard on July 10 in a 2022 lawsuit filed by 1,308 citizens.

Ahead of the Holy Mass, the priests issued a statement titled “The Saemangeum New Airport is Too Dangerous!”

“Many lives are dying due to the project, migratory birds that once visited Saemangeum have vanished, and local fishermen are leaving,” said Janggye parish priest Song Yeon-hong, who presided over the Holy Mass.

Song also pointed out that the migratory bird habitat is highly unsuitable for an airport due to the high risk of bird strikes.

Saemangeum boasts the world’s longest seawall spanning 33.9 kilometers (21.06 miles). It is a feeding ground for migratory birds, including endangered species that rely on the mudflats as a crucial stopover along the East Asian-Australasian Flyway.

The ecosystem has already been impacted by the Saemangeum reclamation project, which started in 1991.

Environmentalists say the construction for the project has sealed off the tidal flats from the sea, destroying the mudflats.

Song urged that the ecosystem in the Saemangeum area be restored “through the permanent circulation of seawater.”

He called for the restoration of the environment, which will bring back the “birds and clams that disappeared,” and create a “land where fishermen return to harvest clams.”

“God's creation must not be reduced to a commodity for economic and political gain,” the priest stressed.

The land reclamation project has seen repeated stoppages due to lawsuits filed by environmentalists, citing violations of international obligations regarding biodiversity conservation.

Members of the Bird and Humanity Marching Group, who have undertaken a walk for over 20 days in August from Gunsan, North Jeolla Province, to Seoul, against the proposed airport, delivered a solidarity statement at the Mass.

The group’s leader, identified only by his nickname Strawberry, expressed gratitude to the priests, nuns, and citizens who stood in solidarity with them.

“It is especially meaningful that you are offering this Mass,” he said.

“This march goes beyond calling for the cancellation of the Saemangeum New Airport; it aims to stop the undemocratic and violent development policies the government has pursued for over 30 years,” he added.

* This is a translated and edited version of the report that was first published by the Catholic Times of Korea on Sept. 2.