- Strong response hinted with "prosecution for SNS dissemination" over allegations of North Korean nuclear wastewater discharge
- 45㎍/L of uranium detected in Seogeomdo intake well, leading to immediate closure and worsening drinking water shortages on the island
- Critics blast "double standards" compared to past Fukushima response while government rushes to draw lines attributing it to "natural origins"

Amid the detection of the radioactive substance 'uranium' exceeding standard levels in the tap water of Seogeomdo, Ganghwa-gun, Incheon, the government—which should be investigating the cause—is courting controversy by warning of prosecution under the Information and Communications Network Act against public opinion raising suspicions, effectively attempting to silence critics. Criticism is mounting that rather than conducting a thorough investigation into what is a serious security issue involving fears of a North Korean radiological threat, the government is overly fixated on controlling public opinion.

As claims spread that the excessive uranium concentration in Seogeomdo's water facilities was caused by North Korea's Pyolsan uranium refinery, the government warned of strong legal action, stating, "We plan to file complaints under the Information and Communications Network Act if unverified matters are distributed or shared via SNS." The government maintains the stance that recent uranium concentrations near Ganghwado and the Han River estuary range from 0.133 to 3.025㎍/L, which falls under natural origins, and that the Seogeomdo incident is also a phenomenon caused by underground bedrock.

In fact, the Incheon Metropolitan City Waterworks Headquarters test results on the 6th of last month showed that uranium exceeding drinking water standards (30㎍/L) was detected in Seogeomdo's tap water, and a second test on the 16th confirmed 45㎍/L in one collection well, leading to the immediate closure of the facility. As a result, residents within the Civilian Control Line, where boats are the only means of transportation, are suffering from severe drinking water shortages, having to procure bottled water at their own expense.

For years, experts have warned of the possibility that high-level radioactive wastewater from North Korea's Pyolsan plant flows into the West Sea via the Yesong River, defining this as an asymmetric threat on the level of a "cross-border environmental attack."

Regarding the government's stern "threat of prosecution," some point out that it represents a double standard. While politicians and the government previously took the lead in condemning Japan's discharge of Fukushima nuclear wastewater, they are now attempting to silence the public through judicial processing rather than alleviating scientific anxieties when faced with water quality abnormalities in a border region directly tied to the safety of the capital area. Unless transparent information disclosure and multifaceted epidemiological investigations come first, public distrust regarding security complacency is expected to spread uncontrollably.