The Geumho River () flows through
North Gyeongsang Province
North Gyeongsang Province (, ) is a province in eastern South Korea, and with an area of , it is the largest province in the Korean peninsula. The province was formed in 1896 from the northern half of the former Gyeongsang province, and remaine ...
, South Korea, and drains into the
Nakdong River
The Nakdong River or Nakdonggang (, ) is the longest river in South Korea, which passes through the major cities of Daegu and Busan. It takes its name from its role as the eastern border of the Gaya confederacy during Three Kingdoms of Korea, Kor ...
. It rises in the hilly area of western
Pohang
Pohang (; ), formerly spelled Po-Hang, is the largest city in North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea, with a List of cities in South Korea, population of 499,363 as of 2022, bordering the Sea of Japan, East Sea to the east, Yeongcheon to the w ...
, flows west for 116 kilometers before meeting with the Nakdong in western
Daegu
Daegu (; ), formerly spelled Taegu and officially Daegu Metropolitan City (), is a city in southeastern South Korea. It is the third-largest urban agglomeration in South Korea after Seoul and Busan; the fourth-largest List of provincial-level ci ...
. It drains an area of more than 2,000 square kilometers. Notable tributaries include the
Sincheon, which flows north through Daegu. The name ''Geumho-gang'' means "river of the
zither
Zither (; , from the Greek ''cithara'') is a class of stringed instruments. The modern instrument has many strings stretched across a thin, flat body.
Zithers are typically played by strumming or plucking the strings with the fingers or a ...
-shaped lake," a reference to its
oxbow
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An oxbow is a U-shaped metal pole (or larger wooden frame) that fits the underside and the sides of the neck of an ox or wikt:bullock, bullock. A bow pin holds it in place.
The term "oxbow" is widely used to refer to a U-shaped meand ...
curve in northern Daegu. Much of the riverbank in Daegu has been transformed into parkland.
Ecological conditions
The Geumho has been among the most polluted rivers in South Korea largely because of industrial waste from nearby large-scale dyeing operations. This is especially critical because the Geumho is a tributary of the Nakdong river. The Geumho water samples have consistently received low grades on the water grading system of the Korean government. Communities allege that the water quality problem stemmed from the development of the
Wicheon complex. The regional environment office of Daegu reported a new ecological plan to improve water quality around the rivers in 2008, including improvement of water circulation and the rivers' ecosystems.
[Change river of Geumho and Hyeongsan into 'Good' quality living melanian snail<금호강.형산강에 다슬기 사는 '좋은물'흐른다> 연합뉴스 2008-01-08]
See also
*
List of rivers of Korea
The Korean peninsula is mainly mountainous along its east coast, so most of its river water flows west, emptying into the Yellow Sea. Some of these rivers flow through lakes en route to the coast, but these are all artificial reservoirs, as ther ...
*
Geography of South Korea
South Korea is located in East Asia, on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula located out from the far east of the Asian landmass. The only country that shares a land border with South Korea is North Korea, lying to the north with of ...
References
{{coord, 35.817, 128.479, type:river_globe:earth_region:KR, display=title
Rivers of North Gyeongsang Province
Rivers of Daegu
Rivers of South Korea