S. Korea set for on-site survey in DMZ project

South Korea plans to conduct a field survey next week in the demilitarized zone (DMZ) bisecting the Koreas to select a site for a "peace park," an official said Thursday.

The Park Geun-hye administration has pushed for the ambitious project to create an ecological park in the heavily-armed DMZ as part of efforts to reduce military tensions on the peninsula.

"A government-civilian survey team has been created. Around 20 members will look around several candidate sites from Dec. 10-12," the unification ministry official said.

The upcoming activity is also intended to gather information for a specific plan for the DMZ project, he added.

The government is considering another on-site survey in April or May next year, he said.

Three border towns are considered to be among the candidate sites in the South -- Paju, which is relatively close to Kaesong Industrial Park, and Chorwon and Goseong in Gangwon Province.

Goseong is just south of the Mount Kumgang resort in the North.

The DMZ, which is about 250 kilometers long and 4 km wide, is a mine-filled buffer zone, with the two sides technically in a state of cease-fire.

South Korea has earmarked 32 billion won for the project.

The Park government hopes to begin the construction of the envisioned park before the end of its tenure in early 2017.

If realized, it would be among Park's major accomplishments.

But many question the feasibility of the project, which would be out of the question without Pyongyang's cooperation.

Critics say the North is certain to demand huge political and economic incentives, many of which would be unacceptable for the South under current circumstances. (Yonhap)