“It’s my first day of travel in Korea, so after visiting Bukchon, I came here. But honestly, it is quite dirty.”
In Myeongdong, Jung-gu, Seoul, on Feb. 16 at 7 p.m., Filipino tourist Emanuel Pedralvez, 30, said as he looked at the garbage piled up next to a shop entrance. Where he pointed, dozens of garbage items were piled up, including disposable plastic cups filled with coffee, paper containers with hardened tteokbokki sauce, and half-eaten grilled corn.
A white plastic bag was tied to the handle of Pedralvez’s travel suitcase. “It was hard to find trash bins, so I walked around with uneaten food and paper cups put in here,” he explained. Inside the white bag were a paper plate and leftover takoyaki. “It would be better if there were more trash bins in easily visible places,” Pedralvez said.
Following the recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, the commercial district of Myeongdong in Seoul is experiencing widespread illegal trash dumping on its streets. Especially at night, when sanitation workers are not active, garbage piles up on the streets, benches, flower beds, and even in shared bicycle baskets. Trash is also found in front of stores after closing. Due to the scarcity of trash cans, tourists dispose of garbage illegally, with no one to clean it up. The trash problem in the Myeongdong area was pointed out even before the pandemic, but the same problem is recurring.
Various kinds of garbage were piled up on Myeongdong streets on Feb. 15 and 16. “Compared to tourist spots in Japan, Myeongdong seems to have more garbage,” said Nanako Mori, 21, a Japanese tourist who came to Korea with a friend. “In Japan, even garbage generated outside can be thrown away in any convenience store, but I’m not sure if that’s possible in Korea.” A Norwegian tourist, A, 49, who was eating a tornado potato, said, “Since there were no garbage bins around, I had no choice but to throw it on a pile of garbage next to the bench,” adding, “Eating while walking is a good experience, but garbage disposal seems to be a problem.” A foreign couple left their unfinished cup of tteokbokki on the windowsill of an empty shop and left. “Myeongdong feels like it has particularly fewer trash cans compared to other tourist spots in Korea,” said Yang Wei, 28, a Chinese tourist. “I ate a croffle, but there was nowhere to throw away the paper bowl.” An official from Myeongdong police station said, “There were even tourists who came into the police station asking where the trash can is.”
Littering in Myeongdong has been an ongoing issue for years, especially in 2015, when the number of Chinese tourists surged and the dumping of trash and the lack of trash cans became controversial. Twenty-five tons of garbage are disposed of in the Myeongdong tourist zones (Myeongdong, Mugyodong, Eulji-ro, and Cheonggyecheon Plaza) per day, according to the Jung-gu Office; Yet there are only 28 trash cans in the areas. “There were previously 18 trash cans, but 10 more trash bins were installed in the summer of 2023 due to excessive garbage,” said Jung-gu’s office. Despite such efforts, it was difficult to spot trash bins along the main routes frequented by tourists. Only three street garbage stands on Myeongdong-gil and Myeongdong 8-gil, popular tourist routes. Most of the trash disposals come from street vendors, but only a few had their trash cans. A single place of the 43 street vendors in Myeongdong had its trash can or garbage bag for customers.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it plans to increase its budget by nearly 300% year-on-year to maximize the number of trash cans in high-traffic areas, including the Myeongdong tourist zone. “We will install 15 newly designed trash bins in Myeongdong tourist zone this year. Once a survey is conducted by next month, installation will be done before this July or August,” said a Seoul official.
However, the Jung-gu Office, responsible for the implementation of trash cans, said, “We need to have talks with Myeongdong Merchants Associations to determine the specific location of the bins, which may take more time.” Some merchants are reportedly concerned that placing the trash cans near their stores may deter customers. “In the past, whenever we installed trash bins, we had to remove them within two to three days because they were not aesthetically pleasing,” said a representative from the Jung-gu Office, adding, “According to the principle of disposal, the primary responsibility lies with the merchants to dispose the wastes.”
