Background
When the Seoul Metropolitan Government decided on and publicly notified the site of a large waste incineration plant (a regional resource recovery facility) in one district, residents who had already borne the burden of an existing incinerator objected strongly. Changchun represented more than 1,800 local residents in an administrative suit against the City seeking revocation of the siting decision.
What Was at Stake
An administrative disposition is effective only if the "procedure," and not merely the outcome, is lawful. The issue was whether the procedures the law requires were properly observed in deciding the site.
How Changchun Helped
Changchun (attorneys Jaesun Yoon, Donghwan Shin and Younghoon Jung) proved in concrete terms that the site selection committee fell short of the statutory requirements as to its size and composition; that there were defects in the procedure for selecting the expert institution to assess feasibility; and that the gathering of views from the very residents affected was a formality. We stressed that in environmental administration, procedural legitimacy is not a formality but the core of protecting residents' fundamental rights.
The court of first instance found for the residents and revoked the City's siting decision. The City has appealed and the appellate proceedings are under way, and Changchun stands with the residents to the end in defending the first instance ruling. The case shows how important procedural legality is in disputes over large environmental facilities. (Outcomes depend on the facts of each case and may differ.)