By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter
One of the world's most influential environmentalist groups launched a campaign to stop President Lee Myung-bak's cross-country canal project. They warned that the construction will cause ``environmental disaster.''
Friends of the Earth International started an online petition saying that President Lee's plan to construct the canals could ``seriously damage the drinking water of 24 million people and the river's eco-system.''
The group said Korea is not only a signatory of the Ramsar Convention for Wetlands of International Importance, but also host of the Conference of Parties for the Convention in October, and the construction is a shame to Korea's reputation for hosting the event.
``Time Magazine chose you as an environmental hero in November 2007. Your proposed Great Korea Canal Project makes it seem as if the magazine made a mistake. I would like to ask you to show the world your new leadership in environmental protection as an environmental hero by canceling the project,'' the petition read.
The group is one of many publicly opposed to the project. Professors of Seoul National University and many other schools, as well as civic and religious groups have criticized the project.
According to Kyunghyang Daily newspaper research, 55 percent of 1,000 adult respondents opposed the project while 29.8 percent supported it.