Spent 153 Billion Won, Yet Residents Had No Idea... "What Were They Doing for 12 Years?" Wasted Tax Dollars

This is a roadside in Yeongjong Sky City, Incheon.

When the dust-covered waterproof tarp is removed, the inlet of a CleanNet system for food waste is revealed.

Although it was installed a long time ago, it has never been operated even once.

Right next to it, the handle of the general waste CleanNet inlet is left neglected to the point of being covered in spiderwebs.

The CleanNet, an automated waste collection system, is a facility where waste placed into an inlet is automatically transported to a collection station through underground pipes.

When the new town was developed, around 780 waste inlets, 4 collection stations, and 70.4 kilometers of underground pipes were built in Yeongjong Sky City alone.

However, it has never actually been operated since its completion in 2014.

[Facility Management Official: If water fills up or it breaks down, we just repair it and manage it. Literally. It hasn't been able to operate here for 14 years now.]

The Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority originally planned the CleanNet facility, and the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) carried out the construction, but no decision had been made even by the completion date as to who would actually operate it.

Because it was not an essential facility and due to maintenance costs, the district office was reluctant to step up, and joint inspections requested by LH about 10 times for the handover were refused by both the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority and the district office.

After dragging it out for 9 years, an agreement signed in 2023 decided that the district office would operate it, but this time, LH and the district office have failed to narrow their differences over the scope of the repair work.

[Jang Jung-goo / External Cooperation Chairperson, Incheon Civil Society Organizations Network: It has become a nuisance for over 10 years, and LH, the Economic Zone Authority, and the Yeongjong District Office seem to be shifting the blame to each other. We need to make it clear who bears this responsibility...]

This is a waste disposal area in an apartment complex.

Although CleanNet inlets are installed, signs prohibiting their use are attached.

Some residents did not even know that there was a CleanNet in their apartment complex in the first place.

[Resident: It seems like there are quite a few if you walk around. I don't know. I just thought it was something like electricity or something.]

Civic groups, including the Incheon Civil Society Organizations Network, are demanding that an audit be conducted on every process of the CleanNet project and that those responsible be disciplined.

(Reported by Kim Gyu-ri | Produced by Kim Da-yeon | Camera input by Hangyul | Video editing by Choi Hye-ran | Design by Taeyoung | Produced by SBS Digital News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.