{"id":63819,"date":"2025-06-12T15:30:30","date_gmt":"2025-06-12T06:30:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/?p=63819"},"modified":"2025-06-12T15:51:38","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T06:51:38","slug":"north-korea-discharges-uranium-waste-waters-flowing-south-korea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korea-discharges-uranium-waste-waters-flowing-south-korea\/","title":{"rendered":"N. Korea discharges uranium waste into waters flowing to S. Korea"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>North Korea operates a critical uranium refining facility in North Hwanghae province&#8217;s Pyongsan county that serves as a critical link in its nuclear weapons chain. The plant converts mined uranium ore into yellowcake concentrate\u2014essentially purified uranium ready for the next stage of weapons production. This yellowcake then travels to the Yongbyon Nuclear Complex, among other facilities, where scientists enrich it to the high levels needed for nuclear bombs.<\/p>\n<p class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Waste generated at the Pyongsan uranium facility has historically been sent to a reservoir across the river for sedimentation. However, satellite imagery has captured evidence that as the sedimentation pond reached capacity, North Korea began discharging wastewater directly into the river system.<\/p>\n<p class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">My satellite analysis utilized WorldView-3 imagery available through the World Imagery Wayback service provided by the Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) in the United States to examine the wastewater discharge situation. Wastewater released from the sedimentation pond flows downstream along waterways, eventually joining the Yesong River and flowing south through Ganghwa Bay before entering the West Sea. This raises serious concerns about contamination of South Korean rivers and coastal waters.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_63821\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-63821\" style=\"width: 1280px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide1-2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-63821 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide1-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide1-2.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide1-2-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide1-2-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide1-2-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide1-2-747x420.jpg 747w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide1-2-696x392.jpg 696w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide1-2-1068x601.jpg 1068w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-63821\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Satellite imagery shows the Pyongsan uranium facility&#8217;s sedimentation pond connected to drainage channels, with sediment discharge visible. The wastewater flows 2 kilometers along a small stream before joining the Yesong River, then continues south to discharge into the West Sea. Photo: WorldView-3<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">High-resolution satellite imagery (60 centimeter resolution) captured in late October last year shows wastewater from the Pyongsan uranium facility&#8217;s sedimentation pond being discharged through drainage channels into a small stream. This stream flows two kilometers before joining the Yesong River, which then flows south to meet waters from the Han River, passes through Ganghwa Bay, and eventually reaches the West Sea.<\/p>\n<p class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">As visible in the upper left of the satellite image, the Pyongsan uranium facility has historically sent waste through pipelines to the reservoir for sedimentation. As solid waste accumulated in the reservoir, black sludge formed and built up from the bottom, rising to the water surface level. The wastewater appeared ready to overflow beyond the sedimentation pond. Satellite imagery has captured North Korea neglecting the sedimentation facility and discharging untreated wastewater directly into the river system.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_63822\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-63822\" style=\"width: 1280px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide2-2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-63822\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide2-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide2-2.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide2-2-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide2-2-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide2-2-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide2-2-747x420.jpg 747w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide2-2-696x392.jpg 696w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide2-2-1068x601.jpg 1068w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-63822\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">An underground tunnel was excavated beneath the embankment next to the sedimentation pond, with leachate flowing through drainage channels. This represents unauthorized discharge of uranium concentrate waste into waterways. Photo: WorldView-3<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">High-resolution satellite imagery shows that North Korea excavated an underground tunnel connecting the external drainage system to the sedimentation pond, creating a discharge pathway for wastewater. The leachate flowing from the sedimentation pond through the drainage channels appears as dark coloration in the imagery. This constitutes unauthorized discharge of uranium concentrate waste beyond the sedimentation facility.<\/p>\n<p class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Construction of this drainage system was first identified by Jacob Bogle, a U.S. civilian satellite imagery expert, who published details of the mysterious excavation work on his website (AccessDPRK) on January 5, 2023. Satellite imagery indicates the drainage construction began around March 2022, in early spring. I also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/satellite-imagery-shows-drainage-ditch-built-near-pyongsan-uranium-mill\/\">confirmed<\/a> and analyzed the drainage construction situation in detail on June 22, 2024. The late October satellite imagery shows the drainage system connected to the sedimentation pond through underground tunnels, with leachate confirmed flowing along the small stream.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_63823\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-63823\" style=\"width: 1280px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide3-2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-63823\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide3-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide3-2.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide3-2-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide3-2-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide3-2-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide3-2-747x420.jpg 747w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide3-2-696x392.jpg 696w, https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide3-2-1068x601.jpg 1068w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-63823\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">As waste accumulates in the Pyongsan uranium facility&#8217;s sedimentation pond, sludge (solid waste) continues to increase. October satellite imagery shows the sedimentation pond reaching saturation and exhibiting algal blooms. Photo: Google Earth and WorldView-3<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Across the river from the Pyongsan uranium facility lies a large reservoir with a surface area measured at 34 hectares. Satellite imagery indicates that as North Korea has continued nuclear material production activities, waste has accumulated in the sedimentation pond to saturation levels. Chronological satellite imagery shows that sludge covered only 1.9 hectares in 2006, expanded to 7.5 hectares by 2018, and significantly increased to 16.6 hectares by October 2024. The accumulation of solid waste sludge and surrounding wastewater spread has substantially increased the sedimentation pond&#8217;s surface area. The pond has become severely contaminated, turning green with visible algae blooms. The toxic, noxious odors likely permeate the surrounding area.<\/p>\n<p class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Several years ago, North Korea-focused internet outlets 38 North and Radio Free Asia (RFA) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.38north.org\/2019\/08\/pyongsan082719\/\">raised concerns<\/a> that wastewater from the Pyongsan uranium facility was leaking into the Yesong River, potentially contaminating South Korea&#8217;s Han River estuary and West Sea with radioactive waste. As domestic media coverage heightened awareness of the situation&#8217;s severity, South Korea&#8217;s Ministry of Unification collected samples from the Han River and West Sea for water quality analysis by testing agencies and publicly announced the results. The ministry&#8217;s October 21, 2019 announcement concluded there were &#8220;no unusual findings in Han River and West Sea samples, and no highly radioactive contaminants exist at the Pyongsan uranium refining facility.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">However, the current situation differs significantly from the past. Previously, the concern involved aging pipelines leaking waste into the Yesong River. Since then, pipeline repairs or replacements appear to have addressed the leakage situation, as no such leaks are visible in satellite imagery.<\/p>\n<p class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Now, satellite imagery reveals North Korea&#8217;s intentional discharge of sedimentation pond wastewater into waterways. North Korea completed drainage construction in the latter half of 2024, and high-resolution satellite imagery has captured full-scale wastewater discharge from the Pyongsan uranium facility&#8217;s sedimentation pond. Despite knowing that the international community monitors North Korea&#8217;s key facilities closely through satellite surveillance, North Korea has proceeded with unauthorized waste discharge. North Korea appears to show no consideration for its neighbors. The contaminated Yesong River water now flows south through Ganghwa Bay and Gyeonggi Bay before ultimately reaching the West Sea. Verification efforts appear necessary.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/20250610-3\/\">Read in Korean<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>North Korea operates a critical uranium refining facility in North Hwanghae province&#8217;s Pyongsan county that serves as a critical link in its nuclear weapons chain. The plant converts mined uranium ore into yellowcake concentrate\u2014essentially purified uranium ready for the next stage of weapons production. This yellowcake then travels to the Yongbyon Nuclear Complex, among other [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":201,"featured_media":63821,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wikipediapreview_detectlinks":true,"footnotes":""},"categories":[644],"tags":[3236,696,839,924,1016,1060,1187,1367,1405,1425,1656],"class_list":["post-63819","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-analysis-and-opinion","tag-bruce-songhak-chung-columns","tag-north-pyongan-province","tag-weapons","tag-north-hwanghae-province","tag-surveillance","tag-environment","tag-ministry-of-unification","tag-nuclear-weapons","tag-satellite-imagery","tag-satellite","tag-dprk"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.7 (Yoast SEO v28.2) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>N. Korea discharges uranium waste into waters flowing to S. Korea - North Korea News \u2014 Daily NK | Latest DPRK Updates 2026<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korea-discharges-uranium-waste-waters-flowing-south-korea\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"N. Korea discharges uranium waste into waters flowing to S. Korea\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"North Korea operates a critical uranium refining facility in North Hwanghae province&#8217;s Pyongsan county that serves as a critical link in its nuclear weapons chain. The plant converts mined uranium ore into yellowcake concentrate\u2014essentially purified uranium ready for the next stage of weapons production. This yellowcake then travels to the Yongbyon Nuclear Complex, among other [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korea-discharges-uranium-waste-waters-flowing-south-korea\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"North Korea News \u2014 Daily NK | Latest DPRK Updates 2026\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-12T06:30:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-06-12T06:51:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide1-2.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Bruce Songhak Chung\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Bruce Songhak Chung\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korea-discharges-uranium-waste-waters-flowing-south-korea\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korea-discharges-uranium-waste-waters-flowing-south-korea\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Bruce Songhak Chung\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c339cc714b61bed249d80fbba0476a11\"},\"headline\":\"N. 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Part of the Unification Media Group (UMG) consortium.\",\"email\":\"dailynkenglish@uni-media.net\",\"telephone\":\"82-2-732-6998\",\"legalName\":\"DailyNK\",\"foundingDate\":\"2004-12-01\",\"numberOfEmployees\":{\"@type\":\"QuantitativeValue\",\"minValue\":\"1\",\"maxValue\":\"10\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c339cc714b61bed249d80fbba0476a11\",\"name\":\"Bruce Songhak Chung\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/bruce-s-chung-profile-picture-daily-nk-e1776758604448-150x150.jpg\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/bruce-s-chung-profile-picture-daily-nk-e1776758604448-150x150.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/bruce-s-chung-profile-picture-daily-nk-e1776758604448-150x150.jpg\",\"caption\":\"Bruce Songhak Chung\"},\"description\":\"Dr. Bruce S. Chung previously worked for the Korea Forest Research Institute and the South Korean government\u2019s intelligence agency, and is currently the head of the Satellite Analysis Center at the Korea Institute for Security Strategy. Bruce received his Ph.D. in remote sensing and GIS from the University of Idaho in the United States. He can be reached at chungsh1024@naver.com.\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/author\\\/jungsonghak\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"N. Korea discharges uranium waste into waters flowing to S. Korea - North Korea News \u2014 Daily NK | Latest DPRK Updates 2026","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korea-discharges-uranium-waste-waters-flowing-south-korea\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"N. Korea discharges uranium waste into waters flowing to S. Korea","og_description":"North Korea operates a critical uranium refining facility in North Hwanghae province&#8217;s Pyongsan county that serves as a critical link in its nuclear weapons chain. The plant converts mined uranium ore into yellowcake concentrate\u2014essentially purified uranium ready for the next stage of weapons production. This yellowcake then travels to the Yongbyon Nuclear Complex, among other [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korea-discharges-uranium-waste-waters-flowing-south-korea\/","og_site_name":"North Korea News \u2014 Daily NK | Latest DPRK Updates 2026","article_published_time":"2025-06-12T06:30:30+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-06-12T06:51:38+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1280,"height":720,"url":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Slide1-2.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Bruce Songhak Chung","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Bruce Songhak Chung","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korea-discharges-uranium-waste-waters-flowing-south-korea\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korea-discharges-uranium-waste-waters-flowing-south-korea\/"},"author":{"name":"Bruce Songhak Chung","@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/#\/schema\/person\/c339cc714b61bed249d80fbba0476a11"},"headline":"N. 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