Seoul Metropolitan Water Supply Project
Providing Clean Water to Seoul
Stages 1 and 2 of the Seoul Waterworks project not only meant providing 2.6 million tons of clean water to 10 million people in capital but also solving the water quality issue.
Construction of the first phase began in May 1973, and its completion meant supplying 1.2 million tons of water a day to the citizens of Seoul. Three water transport tunnels were constructed in the Paldang water plant. This was considered to be one of the toughest part of the construction process as the tunnels combined stretched 4,588 meters with the first tunnel being 3,325 meters.
This Project was the first to utilize a vertical push method of construction to minimize the impact on the surrounding traffic in the area.
Stage 2 began in November 1977 and upon completion was 60.4 kilometers. Stages 1 and 2 combined meant 145 kilometers of water pipes with a diameter of 1,100 ~ 2,800 millimeters ran through the city. This project required the work of 2.96 million workers.
Stage 3 began in December 1984 and stretched 120 kilometers. it carried water to 1.3 million tons of water a day to 25 regions. By the end of 1988 when Stage was complete, Kukdong E&C had constructed 59.1% of the waterworks in Seoul.
The Completion of Stages 1 ~ 3 that carried 8.52 million tons of water a day is feat that is hard to find even in other pars of the world.
Stage 4 began in in December 1989 with the goal of providing water to 94% of the city. It was a water treatment and transport project to span 188 kilometers transporting 4.5 million tons of water a day. Kukdong was in charge of the main first segment and completed construction on this portion in December 1992.
The last phase of the Seoul Waterworks project, Stage 5 began in August 1995 and was completed in April 1998. Kukdong Construction was once again in charge of the first segment; constructing a water pump plant that pumped 2 million tons a day as well as water transport tunnels that was 4,490 meters in length.
Kukdong E&C played a key role in the construction of the Seoul Waterworks project. Through this project Kukdong was able to provide a streamlined water delivery system so that water was available even during times of drought. It was also able to provide down river areas with clean water from the dams and provide a balanced water supply throughout the city.