"Never Seen It This Dry": Locals Baffled as Historic Drought Parches Lake Okjeong

"I was born and raised in Imsil, but I think this is the first time I've ever seen Lake Okjeong bare like this since becoming an adult."

On the 6th, longtime residents of Imsil, North Jeolla Province, expressed shock at the landscape of Lake Okjeong, which had exposed its lakebed.

Hwang, a 63-year-old resident, sighed while gazing at the bare floor of the lake, saying, "The water level at Lake Okjeong usually drops a bit every summer, but it has never dried up to this extent. Since Imsil is an agricultural region, we need a lot of water, and I don't know if we will be able to farm properly if it keeps not raining like this."

Another resident in their 40s, surnamed Han, added, "When there was plenty of water, it used to reach right below the cliff on the opposite side, but now almost none is left. I haven't seen any decent rain lately, and I'm worried that if things keep going this way, even the remaining water will completely dry up."

On the morning of the same day, amid a record-breaking heat wave sweeping across North Jeolla Province, the suspension bridge leading to the Gungongeom (Carp Island) Ecological Park in Unam-myeon, Imsil-gun, saw dozens of tourists wiping sweat from their foreheads and necks as they sought to view the scenic landscape of Lake Okjeong.

However, the expansive lake they had anticipated was nowhere to be found.

Following a brief rainy season and a long heat wave, the severely parched Lake Okjeong was cracked open like a dry rice paddy, showing only a muddy yellow color instead of the blue reflecting the sky.

As if the lake had been dry for a long time, lush weeds had taken root across various parts of the lakebed.

Among the visitors that day, disappointed sighs could be heard, such as "There's no water at all" and "Did it dry up because it didn't rain?"

A couple in their 40s, surnamed Jeon, who visited Lake Okjeong from South Chungcheong Province, said, "Since the weather is hot and the water has dried up, we're not going to go all the way inside Carp Island, but rather just look from in front of the suspension bridge. The surrounding landscape management seems nice, so it's a pity that the lake isn't filled with a bit more water."

As of the morning of that day, the water storage rate of Lake Okjeong stood at 21.6%, which is about half of the average year's level of 42.1%.

In particular, due to the impact of the heat wave and other factors, the concentration of blue-green algae cells in the remaining sections of the Lake Okjeong basin has recently increased rapidly, prompting the North Jeolla provincial government to launch monitoring.

As of the 3rd, the number of blue-green algae cells at the Chilbo Power Plant discharge point of Lake Okjeong was measured at 693 cells per milliliter.

Compared to 80 cells per milliliter on July 20 and 146 cells per milliliter on July 27, this represents a 4- to 8-fold increase, raising concerns over the generation of toxic substances, destruction of the aquatic ecosystem, and deterioration of water quality.

The provincial government analyzed that the prolonged heat wave raised water temperatures and caused nutrient salts to flow into streams, creating an environment favorable for the proliferation of blue-green algae.

According to North Jeolla Province, precipitation across the province up to the 3rd remained at 549.5 mm, which is 69.8% of the average year's level of 787.1 mm.

The water storage rate of the remaining 2,153 reservoirs in the province also stood at 44.6%, much lower than the average year's 70.2%.

While crop damage due to the drought has not yet been reported, a "caution" stage drought crisis alert has been issued for Imsil, and an "attention" stage for Jeongeup and Namwon.

Drought crisis alert attention stages have also been issued for Wanju, Jangsu, Gochang, and Buan.

Lake Okjeong is an artificial lake created by the completion of the Seomjin River Dam, South Korea's first multi-purpose dam.

It is a large-scale lake with a basin area of 763 square kilometers and a water storage capacity of 410 million tons, supplying agricultural water to the vast Honam Plain.

The provincial government expects generally low precipitation to continue through September and plans to push forward with drought countermeasures.

A provincial official explained, "We are preparing to proactively provide 1 billion won in disaster management funds to combat the drought on the 10th. For areas near the Seomjin River Dam, rotational water supply is being operated, and we are trying to secure water volume through the recycling of discharged water."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.