Seoul island 'reborn' as eco paradise

(Bamseom - which means chestnut island in Korean - was "reborn" after its demolition as the river deposited sediment and sand, expanding its area by about 4,400 sq m a year. It is now about 280,000 sq m, half the size of Singapore's Coney Island and six times larger than its original area.PHOTO: KIM JINHA)

Aparadisewithsandywhitebeacheswherepure-mindedpeoplelived.That'showYooDeokMoondescribesBamseom,oncehisislandhomeinthemiddleoftheHanRiverrunningthroughcentralSeoul.

Hisheartisstillthere,eventhoughithasbeen47yearssinceheandmorethan400residentswererelocatedtothemainlandaspartofthecapitalcity'sredevelopmentplans.

"I'dtellmychildrenaboutlifeinBamseom,howweusedtoswimintheriverandcatcheelfordinner,andtheythinkitcouldbefuntolivethere,"saidthe76-year-oldfatherofthree,reminiscingaboutthegoodolddays.

OncehometoprisonersduringtheGoryeodynastyfrom918,chestnut-shapedBamseom-whichmeanschestnutislandinKorean-wasblownupin1968toeasefloodingandmakelandfillfornearbyYeouidoIsland,whichhasbecomeSeoul'smainfinancialdistrictandwheretheNationalAssemblyislocated.

Whathashappenedsincetheisland'sdemolitionisliterallya"MiracleOnTheHanRiver"-atermcoinedtodescribeSouthKorea'spost-wareconomicboom.

Bamseomwas"reborn"astheriverdepositedsedimentandsand,expandingitsareabyabout4,400sqmayear.It'snowabout3kmarounditsshoresand,atabout280,000sqm,ishalfthesizeofSingapore'sConeyIslandandsixtimeslargerthanitsoriginalarea.

Nowcoveredwiththickvegetation,theuninhabitedislanddrawssomanyspeciesofbirdsandfishthatitwasdesignatedan"EcosystemReserve"in1999bytheSeoulcitygovernment.

ItwasrecognisedasaninternationallyimportantwetlandbytheRamsarConventionin2012,threeyearsafteritfeaturedintheaward-winningKoreanmovieCastawayOnTheMoon,starringJungJaeYeongasamanstrandedafterafailedsuicideattempt.

BamseomisnowmaintainedbytheHangangBusinessCentreandecologistsarestudyingbirdssuchasthewhite-tailedeagleandbrownhawkowlthathavemigratedtotheisland,saidecologistLeeHoYoung.

"ThereisnohumantouchtoBamseom.Wearekeepingitnaturalasanecologicalpark,andforresearchandeducationpurposes,"hesaid.

Thevarietiesofbirds,fishandplantsfoundontheislandhavegrownovertheyears.Asof2012,therewere49kindsofbirds,39speciesoffishand138typesofrareplantsrecorded,saidDrLee.

OnamediatriporganisedbytheSeoulMetropolitanGovernment,hundredsofcormorantstookflight,afarcryfromthefewdozenthatlivedthereadecadeago.DrLeesaidthereareabout500ontheislandnow.

Bamseomisclosedtothepublic,buteverySeptember,duringtheChuseokautumnfestivalholidays,formerresidentsareallowedtorevisittheislandforahomecomingcelebration.

MrYoo,asecurityguard,joinsinwithabottleofmakgeolli(Koreanricewine)ataspotnearwhereheusedtolive.HisgrandparentswerebornonBamseom,hesaid.

PeoplestartedmovingthereduringtheJoseondynasty(1392-1910)andtheymadealivingbuildingships,fishingandfarming,accordingtoofficialrecords.

Duringhistime,MrYoosaid10ofthe64familieslivingontheislandworkedinshipbuilding,whiletherestwerefarmersorfishermen.HisfamilyhadapeanutfarmbutMrYooworkedatanenergycompanylocatedonthemainland.

Withnoelectricityorwatersupplyontheisland,residentshadtodrinkwaterfromtheriverandusecandlesorkerosenelampsatnight.

(Mr Yoo Deok Moon (above), who grew up on the island, still misses it and heads a Bamseom residents' committee that organises the annual homecoming festival. PHOTO: KIM JINHA)

Buttheinconveniencewasasmallpricetopayforthelifestyletheyenjoyed."Lifewassorelaxingthen.Thescenerywasgreatandwehadthebestsandywhitebeachesthatwoulddrawlotsofvisitorsduringsummer,"herecalled.

The64householdswererelocatedtotheslopesofMountWawoointheMapodistrictinwesternSeoul.MrYoosaidtheyreceivedtotalcompensationworth15.7millionwon(S$19,000)andwereabletobuildtheirownhousesongovernment-assignedland.

About50residentsstillkeepintouchregularly,aspartofaBamseomresidents'committeeheadedbyMrYoo.Everyoneortwomonths,somegatheratBamseomTemple,whichwasalsorelocatedtoMountWawoo.

Theresidents,mostlyintheir70sand80s,helptomaintainthetemplethatwasbuiltaroundthetimetheJoseondynastywasfounded.Itisregisteredasaheritagesiteandreceivesgovernmentfundingformaintenance.

ThecommitteeorganisestheannualhomecomingfestivaltoBamseomandkeepsacommunityhistoryrecordcalledBugundanggut.

UniversityofSeoulresearcherKwonHyeokHee,whodidaPhDonBamseomresidentsin2013,saidtheyhavemanagedtokeeptheirculturealiveevenafterleavingtheisland.

MrYoohopestodomorefortheislandhomehedearlymisses,butlamentsthattimeisrunningout,giventheagesofthepeopleandthatnotmanywanttoparticipate.

HehopestolaunchawebsitetorecordBamseom'shistoryandstartaboattourforstudents.

"MyfinalgoalistostartaprivateorganisationtotakecareofBamseom,"hesaid."Imissmyhometown,andIfeelsomeoneneedstotakecareoftheisland."