An environmental organization claims that the cleanup costs of former U.S. bases in Korea will nearly triple.

The Green Korea United said that 320 billion won will be needed to restore the sites of 17 U.S. military bases among the 23 that were turned over to the Korean government last year. The amount is up from the Defense Ministry’s initial estimates of 119 billion won.

It claimed that environmental inspections were conducted in 2004 and 2005 at the U.S. bases, but the size of the polluted areas has expanded with the passage of time, leading to an increase in cleanup costs.

The environmental group made the claims based on reports by the Korea Rural Community and Agriculture Corporation (KRCAC) and the Environmental Management Corporation.

The KRCAC reported the need to increase cleanup estimates to the Defense Ministry last month.

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