Home > National > Social Affairs

Seoul court tosses government's appeal to build incinerator in Mapo

Published: 12 Feb. 2026, 20:22

Mapo District Office head Park Kang-soo, left, is seen during a press conference against building a new waste incineration plant in the district at a venue in Mapo District, western Seoul on June 9, 2025. [NEWS1]

A Seoul appeals court on Thursday upheld a ruling that the city must scrap its plan to build a new waste incinerator in Mapo District, western Seoul, siding with residents who challenged the project’s approval process.

The Seoul High Court dismissed the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s appeal and ruled in favor of 1,851 Mapo residents who had sought to nullify the public notice designating the site for a new resource recovery facility.

Residents who attended the hearing on Thursday embraced each other outside the courtroom. Some were seen in tears.

The dispute began in August 2023 when Seoul designated Sangam-dong in Mapo District as the site for a new incinerator with a daily capacity of 1,000 metric tons (1,102 U.S. tons). The new facility was to be built near an existing facility with a capacity of 750 metric tons.

Mapo residents filed suit, arguing that there were procedural violations in the site selection process.

The conflict also escalated politically, with Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon claiming last year that the project was “a modernization and redevelopment project that replaces the existing facility.”

Oh reportedly told Mapo District head Park Kang-soo to “focus only on the role of conveying information.”

Mapo District residents who oppose the building of a new waste incineration plant in the district are seen during a rally on Sept. 11, 2022. [NEWS1]

“This is an insulting act toward Mapo residents who have endured the capital’s waste,” Park said in response, and publicly expressed regret toward the city government.

The key issue in court was whether Seoul had properly gathered and consulted residents’ opinions during the site selection process. The first trial court ruled in favor of the residents.

“It is difficult to conclude that residents’ opinions were sufficiently collected during the site selection process,” the first trial court said in January last year. “There were procedural defects.”

Seoul argued that even if the designation was unlawful, canceling it would have a serious impact on public interest. The city appealed the ruling. The appellate court rejected that argument and dismissed the appeal.

“The decision does not reflect the serious reality of confusion caused by the ban on direct landfill disposal in the capital region and the intensifying regional conflicts,” the city government said after the ruling Thursday. “We will announce follow-up measures, including whether to file a further appeal, as soon as possible.”

Mapo District welcomed the ruling, saying that "the procedural illegality in the process of selecting the new incinerator site has been reaffirmed.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHOI SEO-IN [[email protected]]