Water Infrastructure

Major River Facilities

• Dams, reservoirs As of 2020, 17,318 dams and reservoirs accounted for 21.3B㎥ of water holding capacity in total, with the water held used as household, industrial, and agricultural water, and for flood control and power generation, among various purposes

  < Dams and Reservoirs in Korea (2020) >

  Dams and Reservoirs in Korea (2020) : Classification, Total holding capacity, Effective holding capacity, Water supply capacity, Flood control capacity, Power generation capacity, Note, Total, Multi-purpose dams, Flood control dams/facilities, Farming reservoirs, Power generation dams, Household/industrial water dams

  Classification	Total holding capacity (1M㎥)	Effective holding capacity (1M㎥)	Water supply capacity① (1M㎥ per year)	Flood control capacity (1M㎥)	Power generation capacity (1K kW)	Note
  Multi-purpose dams②	12,923.0	9,170.0	11,305.2	2,294.0	1,044.8	Soyang River Dam and 19 others
  Flood control dams/facilities	2,980.6	-	-	2,981.6	-	Peace Dam and 4 others
  Farming reservoirs③	2,971.8	2,864.8	3,125.5	19.0	23.0	Yedang Reservoir and 17,144 others
  Power generation dams④	1,842.4	961.1	1,050.0	276.8	5,303.1	Hwacheon Dam and 20 others
  Household/industrial water dams	638.5	545.6	907.9	23.5	1.8	Unmun Dam and 126 others
  Total	21,356.3	13,541.5	16,388.6	5,594.9	6,372.7	-

  • Volumes and effective holding capacities as indicated in the master plan for dams
  • Based on the water management manuals of the Korea Water Resources Corporation (2020) and includes the Andong-Imha waters connection (23.7M㎥ per year)
  • Based on agricultural production infrastructure statistics of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and Korea Rural Community Corporation (2020)
  • Hydropower Generation Reference Book (2020) of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power; effective water holding capacity calculated based on power generation capacity
• Embankments Embankments totaling 34,778㎞ (small rivers excluded) are in place to prevent flood damage
  • As of 2018, 51.2% of national and regional embankment maintenance was complete, and 24.6% of the embankments required reinforcement, leaving the remaining 24.2% to be filled with new embankments (Overview of Rivers in Korea, 2020)

  Small rivers: Maintenance complete 45.5%, reinforcement required 26.9%, new embankments required 27.6%

• Agricultural water facilities 8,723 pumping and drainage stations supply up to 34K㎥ per second and drain up to 52K㎥ per second, and up to 797㎥ per second can be used from 17,955 holding pools

  < Agricultural Pumping/Drainage Facilities (2018) >

  Agricultural Pumping/Drainage Facilities (2018) : Classification, Total, Pumping stations, Pumping/drainage stations, Drainage stations, Holding pools, No. of facilities, Max. pumping/drainage capacity (㎥ per second)

  Classification	Total	Pumping stations	Pumping/drainage stations	Drainage stations	Holding pools
  No. of facilities	26,678	7,485	125	1,113	17,955
  Max. pumping/drainage capacity (㎥ per second)	85,232	32,934	882	50,619	797

• Estuary banks and freshwater lakes Three estuary banks and 22 freshwater lakes hold a total of 2,530M㎥ of water and supply 4B㎥ of water per year

  < Estuary Banks and Freshwater Lakes (2018) >

  Estuary Banks and Freshwater Lakes (2018) : Classification, Total holding capacity (1M㎥), Effective holding capacity (1M㎥), Water supply capacity1) (1M㎥ per year), Note, Estuary banks and freshwater lakes

  Classification	Total holding capacity (1M㎥)	Effective holding capacity (1M㎥)	Water supply capacity①(1M㎥ per year)	Note
  Estuary banks and freshwater lakes	2,529.2	1,898.7	4,010.3	낙동강하굿둑 등 25개

  • Volumes and effective water holding capacities as indicated in the master plan for dams

Waterworks and Other Water Facilities

• City, industrial, provincial waterworks As of 2018, 503 water intake facilities, 517 water purification plants, and 217K㎞ of water pipelines were in place and operation for city and provincial water supply
  • Water intake facilities 503 facilities amounting to a water intake capacity of 32.9M㎥ per day are in operation, with 42.3% of said capacity meeting city and industrial water needs and 57.7% provincial water needs

    Water intake sources (2018): Rivers 51.8%, dams 45.1%, groundwater 1.8%

  • Purification facilities 517 facilities amounting to a water purification capacity of 30.4M㎥ per day are in operation, with 34% of said capacity meeting city and industrial water needs and 66% provincial water needs
  • Water pipelines 217K㎞ of water pipelines are in place to meet city and industrial water needs (2.5%) and provincial water needs (97.5%)

  < Water Intake Facilities, Water Purification Facilities, and Water Pipelines for City, Industrial, and Provincial Use (2018) >

  Water Intake Facilities, Water Purification Facilities, and Water Pipelines for City, Industrial, and Provincial Use (2018) : Classification, City/industrial waterworks, Provincial waterworks, Water intake facilities, Water purification facilities, No. of facilities, Capacity (1K㎥ per day), Water pipelines  (㎞)

  Classification	Water intake facilities		Water purification facilities		Water pipelines  (㎞)
  	No. of facilities	Capacity (1K㎥ per day)	No. of facilities	Capacity (1K㎥ per day)
  City/industrial waterworks	29	13,916(42.3%)	71	10,346(34.0%)	5,379(2.5%)
  Provincial waterworks	474	18,945(57.7%)	446	20,099(66.0%)	211,771(97.5%)
  Total	503	32,861	517	30,445	217,150

• Small-scale waterworks Village, small-scale, and dedicated waterworks are in place and operation in disadvantaged areas outside of cities

  < Small-scale Waterworks (2018) >

  Small-scale Waterworks (2018) : Classification, Village waterworks, Small-scale waterworks, Dedicated waterworks, Capacity (1K㎥ per day), No. of facilities, Total

  Classification	Total	Village waterworks	Small-scale waterworks	Dedicated waterworks
  Capacity (1K㎥ per day)	1,361(100%)	482(35.4%)	314(23.1%)	565(41.5%)
  No. of facilities	14,933(100%)	5,213(34.9%)	9,129(61.1%)	591(4.0%)

• Groundwater As of 2018, 1,640 groundwater facilities were providing access to groundwater of 2,916M㎥ per year, with the majority used for farming, fishing, and household purposes

  < Groundwater Facilities by Purpose (2018) >

  Groundwater Facilities by Purpose (2018) : 2018, Household, Industrial, Farming, fishing, Other, No. of facilities (1K), Used  (1M㎥ per year), Total, Alluvial, Bedrock

  2018		Total	Household	Industrial	Farming, fishing	Other
  No. of facilities (1K)	Total	1,640	832	13	792	3
  	Alluvial	927	465	4	457	1
  	Bedrock	713	367	9	335	2
  Used  (1M㎥ per year)	계	2,916	1,229	174	1,485	27.6
  	Alluvial	1,172	453	41	673	5.0
  	Bedrock	1,743	776	133	812	22.6

• Seawater desalinization 102 small-scale facilities are in operation (9,242 ㎥ per day) mainly in rural areas, mid- to large-scale facilities (580K㎥ per day) for industrial complex use were or will be installed in 3 locations

  < Installation and Operation of Seawater Desalinization Facilities (2018) >

  Installation and Operation of Seawater Desalinization Facilities (2018) : Classification, Small-scale (102 facilities), Mid- to large-scale, Gwangyang, Gijang (suspended), Daesan (under construction), Capacity (㎥ per day), Total

  Classification	Total	Small-scale (102 facilities)	Mid- to large-scale
  			Gwangyang	Gijang (suspended)	Daesan (under construction)
  Capacity (㎥ per day)	589,242	9,242	30,000	450,000	100,000

Sewerage

• Drainage water/waste water facilities As of 2018, 4,505 public facilities were processing 26,165K㎥ of public drainage water per day and 1,819K㎥ of public wastewater per day, and 2,731 private drainage water facilities (septic tanks, etc.) were in operation
  • The total extension of drainage water pipelines is 156K㎞, made up of converging pipelines (44K㎞), wastewater pipelines (65K㎞), and rainwater pipelines (47K㎞)

  < Drainage Water/Wastewater Facilities (2018) >

  Drainage Water/Wastewater Facilities (2018) : Classification, Public drainage water facilities, Public wastewater, Private drainage water facilities, No. of facilities, Capacity (1K㎥ per day), Drainage water processing facilities, Waste processing facilities, Wastewater, Septic tanks, Total

  Classification	Public drainage water facilities			Public wastewater	Private drainage water facilities
  	Total	Drainage water processing facilities	Waste processing facilities		Wastewater	Septic tanks
  No. of facilities	4,297	4,111	186	208	490천	2,241천
  Capacity (1K㎥ per day)	26,165	26,124	41	1,819	-	-

urvey/Observation Facilities and Information Systems

• Hydrological survey Flood control offices, Korea Meteorological Administration, public water resource facility operators are operating 2,048 facilities for observation of heavy rainfalls, water levels, flow rates, sediment loads, soil moisture levels, and evapotranspiration levels.

  < Hydrological Observation Facilities (2018, Korea Annual Hydrological Report) >

  Hydrological Observation Facilities (2018, Korea Annual Hydrological Report) : Classification, Heavy rainfalls, Water levels, Flow rates, Sediment loads, Soil moisture, Evapotranspiration, No. of observation facilities, Total

  Classification	Total	Heavy rainfalls	Water levels	Flow rates	Sediment loads	Soil moisture	Evapotranspiration
  No. of observation facilities	2,048	715	775	515	25	8	10

• Water quality and aquatic ecology survey The National Institute of Environmental Research, Ministry of Environment, city and provincial governments, and public agencies are operating 6,625 facilities for water quality measurement of various functions, including overall quality measurement and automated measurement

  < Water Quality Observation Facilities (2018, Water Environment Measurement Network Operation Plan) >

  Water Quality Observation Facilities (2018, Water Environment Measurement Network Operation Plan) : Classification, Water quality measurement networks, Overall quality measurement networks(multi-function), Automated measurement networks, Sediment measurement networks, Radioactivity measurement networks, Biological measurement networks, Non-point pollutant measurement networks, No. of observation facilities, Total

  Classification	Total	Water quality measurement networks	Overall quality measurement networks (multi-function)	Automated measurement networks	Sediment measurement networks	Radioactivity measurement networks	Biological measurement networks	Non-point pollutant measurement networks
  No. of observation facilities	6,625	1,936	337(106)	70	306	90	3,884	2

• Groundwater The National Institute of Environmental Research, Ministry of Environment, local governments, and public agencies are operating 5,700 facilities for national measurement and regional measurement of groundwater for purposes that include control, contamination prevention, and agricultural use

  < Groundwater Observation Facilities (2018, Groundwater Quality Measurement Network Operation Results) >

  Groundwater Observation Facilities (2018, Groundwater Quality Measurement Network Operation Results) : Classification, National groundwater measurement networks, Regional groundwater measurement networks, Backup observation networks, No. of observation facilities, Groundwater control, Contamination prevention, Agricultural use, Contamination prevention, General, Total

  Classification	Total	National groundwater measurement networks			Regional groundwater measurement networks		Backup observation networks
  		Groundwater control	Contamination prevention	Agricultural use	Contamination prevention	General
  No. of observation facilities	5,700	599	822	627(446/181)	781	1,240	1,631

• Information systems Government departments and public agencies are operating around 25 information systems

  Government departments and public agencies are operating around 25 information systems : Operator, Information system

  Operator	Information system
  Ministry of Environment	Nine systems, including the Water Management Information Networking System, Water Environment Information System, Water Resources Management Information System, River Water Use Management System, and Overall Water Quality Information System
  Ministry of the Interior and Safety	National Disaster Management System
  Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs	River Information Management GIS
  Korea Meteorological Administration	Open Climate Data Portal, Hydrological, Climate, and Drought Information System
  National Geographic Information Institute	National Land Information Platform
  National Academy of Agricultural Sciences	Agriculture and Weather 365, Soil Environment Map
  Korea Environment Institute	National Land Environment Assessment Map
  Korea Water Resources Corporation	Drought Information Portal, National Groundwater Information System, National Waterworks Information System
  Korea Rural Community Corporation	Rural Agricultural Water Resource Information System, Rural Groundwater Management System, Farmland Portal System
  Korea Environment Corporation	National Sewerage Information System, Water Pollution Prevention Information System