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2025 Vol.30, Issue 3

Article

Assessment of Marine Environmental Impacts from the Development of the Saemangeum Secondary Battery Industrial Complex: Focus on Environmental Indicators

새만금 이차전지 산업단지 개발에 따른 해양 환경 영향 평가: 주요 수질지표를 중심으로

SUNG-HEE SEO1*
서 성희1*
1Professor, School of Liberal Studies, Kunsan National University, Jeonbuk State, Gunsan 54150, Korea
1국립군산대학교 자율전공학부 스마트에코시스템공학 교수
*Corresponding Author
31 August 2025. pp. 149-159
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Abstract

This study aimed to assess the potential impacts of the Saemangeum secondary battery industrial complex on the adjacent marine environment by analyzing temporal trends in water quality parameters from 2022 to 2025. Data were obtained from the Water Quality Automatic Monitoring System operated by the Ministry of Environment (MEIS), focusing on two coastal areas: the Geum River Estuary and the Saemangeum sea area. Parameters analyzed included salinity, electrical conductivity (EC), pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), turbidity, chemical oxygen demand (COD), nitrate, phosphate, and cyanobacteria. At the Geum River Estuary, salinity, nitrate, phosphate, and cyanobacteria levels increased significantly over the study period (p<0.01). Salinity rose from 9.4 PSU in 2023 to 27.6 PSU in 2025, indicating the combined effects of limited seawater exchange and potential inputs of high-salinity wastewater from nearby industrial activities. Similar trends were observed in the Saemangeum waters, where salinity (p=0.04) and phosphate (p<0.01) showed significant increases. Rising nutrient concentrations and cyanobacterial abundance suggest a growing risk of eutrophication and ecosystem disturbance. Despite the industrial complex being in its early operational phase, the findings provide empirical evidence of measurable changes in coastal water quality. This underscores the urgent need for strengthened wastewater management strategies and the expansion of long-term, integrated monitoring systems, including both physicochemical and biological indicators. The results serve as a baseline for future environmental management policies in the context of accelerating industrial development along Korea’s west coast.

Keywords
Saemangeum
Secondary battery industrial complex
Marine environment
Water quality indicators
Salinity

본 연구는 새만금 이차전지 산업단지의 조성과 운영이 인접 해역의 수질환경에 미치는 영향을 평가하기 위해, 해양수산부 해양환경정보포털(MEIS)에서 제공하는 수질자동측정망 및 해양환경측정망 자료를 기반으로 2022년부터 2025년까지 금강하구와 새만금 해역의 주요 수질항목에 대한 연도별 변화를 분석하였다. 분석 대상 항목은 염분, 전기전도도(EC), pH, 용존산소(DO), 탁도, 화학적 산소요구량(COD), 질산성질소(Nitrate), 인산성인(Phosphate), 남조류로 구성되었다. 금강하구에서는 염분, 질산성질소, 인산성인, 남조류 농도가 3년간 통계적으로 유의하게 증가하였으며(p<0.01), 새만금 해역에서도 염분(p=0.04)과 인산성인(p<0.01) 농도 증가가 확인되었다. 특히 금강하구의 염분은 2023년 9.4 PSU에서 2025년 27.6 PSU까지 급증하였고, 새만금 해역 역시 평균 염분이 26 PSU 이상으로 유지되며, 고염도 상태가 지속되고 있는 것으로 나타났다. 이는 방조제로 인한 해수교환 제한과 더불어, 2025년부터 본격화된 산업단지 가동에 따른 고염도 폐수 유입 가능성이 복합적으로 작용했을 수 있음을 시사한다. 인과 질소의 농도 증가, 그리고 남조류 농도 상승은 부영양화 가능성과 생태계 교란 위험을 시사한다. 본 연구는 산업단지 운영 초기임에도 불구하고 인접 해역에서 수질항목의 통계적으로 유의한 변화가 확인되었음을 실측자료 기반으로 입증하였으며, 이는 향후 해양환경 영향을 예측하고 방지하기 위한 정책 수립에 기초자료로 활용될 수 있다. 또한, 산업단지 인근 해역에 대한 장기적이고 통합적인 수질 및 생물학적 모니터링 체계의 구축이 시급하다는 점을 제안한다.

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Information
  • Publisher :The Korean Society of Oceanography
  • Publisher(Ko) :한국해양학회
  • Journal Title :The Sea Journal of the Korean Society of Oceanography
  • Journal Title(Ko) :한국해양학회지 바다
  • Volume : 30
  • No :3
  • Pages :149-159
  • Received Date : 2025-07-05
  • Revised Date : 2025-08-04
  • Accepted Date : 2025-08-11
  • DOI :https://doi.org/10.7850/jkso.2025.30.3.149
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