Politics of watershed management: The Han River and Nakdong River basins in South Korea

In South Korea (hereafter, Korea), rapid economic growth has imposed a huge burden on the environment, especially the water quality in rivers that supply drinking water. Water pollution has become an issue of social concern because of its intimate connection to quality of life.; Environmental regulations are a controversial issue in Korea. This is because regulatory measures impose heavy costs on the industrial sectors and stakeholders. Which environmental regulations are introduced, and how to distribute the burden of environmental regulations, are political decisions that have resulted in conflict and competition between various policy actors. Social values for environmental protection and policy actors' participation in the policy-making process have been conditioned by larger changes in the policy environment. This research intends to show how the changes of policy actors' roles and powers have influenced watershed management policy-making and policy outcomes under rapid changes of policy environment. It assesses the changing composition of policy actors and their roles and powers to transform policy-making.; This research is based on two case studies, the Special Comprehensive Watershed Management Measures (SCWMMs) enacted for the Han River (1998) and Nakdong River (2000) in Korea that represent the transformation made to the policy environment and the changing composition, and roles and powers of policy actors in watershed management policy-making.; Based on the analysis of the Korean cases, this research examines environmental policy in Korea and the impacts of the rapid changes to the policy environment, the changing composition and influence of policy actors, and the ultimate policy outcomes. The case studies confirm the Han and Nakdong River SCWMMs were produced from the conflict and compromise between economic development and special interest-oriented groups and sustainability-oriented groups. Like other newly industrialized and democratized countries, Korea faces a daunting challenge. It must consider the sustainability of environmental policy-making while at the same time encouraging economic growth and development. In the rapid changes of political and socioeconomic conditions, Korean society has confronted both opportunities and obstacles in producing sustainable watershed management policies and constructing a sustainability-oriented environmental policy-making system. Ultimately, the continuously developing environmental domain and maturation of civil society will be a critical factor in the construction of sustainability-oriented environmental-making systems in the future. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)...