It was like nothing had happened. There it was, the sandy beach of Mallipo gleaming and fishing ships plying peacefully through the light blue sea. The scene was such a contrast to back in last December that I had to blink my eyes, looking for traces of grease.

On December 7, 2007, the whole area of Korea's southwestern coast at Taean, Chungcheongnam-do (South Chungcheong Province), famous for its marine park, beaches and fish farms were indelibly blackened due to an oil spill coming from an oil tanker leaking into the sea. Around 12,000 tons of oil formed a grimy film on top of the water, making a big dent in the region's economy and livelihood of the locals. Back then Taean was the headline in every news bulletin, attracting even celebrities and presidential candidates to at least have a look.

Around that time I was sitting on the rocky side of the beach, wiping the surface of stones and pebbles with other volunteers and army servicemen. First you start wiping it with your hand, then with two hands, then with your two feet rubbing the whole sandy floor. But once you notice it's not the rocks but the ground that continues to well up with oil, you just dig deep, lay the oil absorbent sheet down and start stomping on it, hoping to suck us as much as possible.



Still, that work was easier then the group on the forefront who faced the sea of black shiny waves, with oil sheets at hand. Everybody was armed with heavy masks, protection coats and boots. Would we make it, I wondered. All other volunteers that came before and after me must have thought so too ?all 1.3 million of them.

?he place was teeming with volunteers especially January to March,?one of the officials at a medical camp said. ?irst they would complain about the smell, then their eyes turned blurry and they broke out in rashes. They worked on nonetheless.?br>
According to the official report by Taean exactly 1,316,319 volunteers showed up to clean 57,582 ha of land from early December to March 31st. An average of 11,446 people sought the place daily including church pastors, monks, foreign residents, TV personalities and presidential candidates too.

Over 2 million items were donated in the process including 29,925 boxes of cup noodles, 103,390 cartons of milk, 133,120 bread rolls. Over 17,000 cleaning ships, 294 helicopters, tractors and other large facilities made all the difference. Private charities donated 3.8 million won. And so, after much wiping and washing over the following six months, the situation improved, indeed

Last weekend a festival was held in Taean, hosted jointly by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism add Korea Tourism Association, and sponsored by Korea Tourism Organization. Known as ?aek-ya?or White Night Festival, it also carried the theme ? festival of gratitude for volunteers.?The festival hummed with over 30 music groups composed of pop idol singers, rock groups, break-dancers, popera artists and more to perform from the evening of 7 p.m. to 4 a.m. the next day. The all-night concert rocked the whole beach with stage effects and fireworks, and putting to shame the worries about empty seats in the early part of the evening.

Also featured was a performance from ?lack Island,?the dance group from Chungnam National University, a video of volunteer activities of Taean, a thank you message from Culture Minister Yu In-chon and award ceremony for Taean-helpers. Some thousands of volunteer workers that participated in the oil removal project re-visited the place that day.

?ust a few months ago I was in doubt as to whether this place could open up the beach this year but now all that doubt is gone,?said Lim, one of the volunteers that attended the concert.
? thought it would still stink with the smell of oil or have black spots in the sea but I had nothing to worry about,?said a tourist with the family name Goh. ?t seems like Taean has almost returned to its original self. I would definitely recommend others come for a dip here.?br>
The seafood restaurants and other small snack bars lining the beach were also welcoming guests again. The raw octopus chopped into pieces and dipped in sesame oil continued wriggling for the next 10 minutes. The small-scale amusement parks complete with Pirate Ship and other mid-sized carnival rides also had people lined up for the fun, and tents set up from tourism organizations were providing away free pamphlets and pens.

?nly last summer, you wouldn't be able to find a seat in our restaurant situated so close to the sea,?one of the waitresses in seafood restaurant said. ?ot a single guest came for winter fishing. But that has been changing slowly since April.?Taean officially declared the resumption of normal operations on April 18 after approval by government inspectors.

?t was hard when the disaster struck,?Jin Tae-gu the mayor of Taean said in his interview with Taean Ilbo Newspaper, recounting the plight for the past half year. ?ll the fishery products produced in Taean were rejected, even the agricultural products that have nothing to do with sea. My heartfelt gratitude goes out once again to those who wiped the greasy rocks during the cold and snow throughout the winter."

Starting with Mallipo Beach, Taean will be opening some 30 additional beaches. Other festivals to celebrate the comeback of Taean will be held throughout the next month including three marathon events, a sand sculpture competition, world beach soccer, open water swimming, an exhibition of Goryeo-era porcelain and more.

For more information on tourism in Taean visit:
Taean County Website: http://www.taean.go.kr/english/index.asp
Chungcheongnamdo Website: http://www.chungnam.net/content/universal/english/index.jsp

By Kim Hee-sung
Korea.net staff writer

SOURCE : Korea.net