South Korean environmental groups including Green Korea have demanded that the country share some of the events at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics with other countries as proposed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
 
Members of the groups on Tuesday made the request in a news conference in front of the Seoul office of the organizing committee for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.
 
The groups said that Gangwon Province, which is already  580 billion won in debt due to preparation for the games, plans to issue local bonds worth 100 billion won a year for the next three years.
 
They criticized the province for pouring 86 billion won into a stadium for the opening and closing ceremonies and spending an additional 100 billion won on other facilities that will be removed after the games.
 
The environmental groups stressed that utilizing existing facilities and sharing events with cities outside Korea would agree with the Olympic spirit which values the environment and economy.
 
The IOC recommended that South Korea stage some events in different countries to cut costs, but the committee remains opposed to the idea.