Yeon-Tae Kim et al. v. Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport

On June 30, 2022, the defendant, the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport, established a basic plan to construct an airport on a site secured through the reclamation of the Saemangeum tidal flats. The plaintiffs, 1,308 South Korean citizens who oppose the construction of the airport, filed a lawsuit to cancel the basic plan. For the establishment of the basic plan, a feasibility analysis should prove that airport construction project is viable even if it alters the natural environment. The plaintiffs argued that the pre-feasibility study report had already confirmed that the project would not be economically feasible. The plaintiff claimed that, considering the value of tidal flats as carbon sinks is becoming increasingly important, the reclamation of tidal flats for an unnecessary new airport for aircraft—the most carbon intensive emitter in transportation—is also inconsistent with the carbon neutrality policy of the government. The plaintiff further argued that the basic plan violated the constitutional duty of the state to protect its citizen from climate disasters since the constitutional environmental right imposes a responsibility on the state to protect the environment for the enjoyment of future generations.