Interior ministry to launch smartphone reporting service for rivers and valleys

The interior ministry said Thursday it will begin piloting a smartphone service at cleanriver.kr on Aug. 14, seeking to fill enforcement gaps in rivers and valleys through public reports of suspected illegal activity.

The service layers aerial photographs and data on river and smaller-stream boundaries on a map, so users can determine whether buildings, platforms or other facilities sit inside those zones. Selecting a suspected violation links users automatically to the Safety Report portal, where they can file a report.

Vacationers who encounter suspected charges for spaces or facilities installed without permission can check the location and make a report on site. The government said administrative capacity alone has limits in continuously managing all rivers and valleys nationwide.

"The government will also carry out intensive special enforcement throughout August to eradicate illegal activity and will do its utmost to create clean rivers and valleys that everyone can enjoy together," Kim Yong-gyun, director general for natural disasters at the interior ministry, said.

The ministry will gather user feedback and address inconveniences during the pilot. The service's provisional name, Cheongjeong Hagye, will be finalized in September after feedback from users.

The ministry will also hold a public participation event from Aug. 15 to Sept. 14. Participants can post about the service on social media or upload photos showing water recreation in clean rivers and valleys, with 100 people selected to receive beverage vouchers worth 10,000 won.