Over 600 Industrial Chimney Pollutants to Be Disclosed in Real-Time on the Internet

Amendment to Subordinate Legislation of the Air Environment Conservation Act Approved at Cabinet Meeting on the 24th
Mandatory Purchase System for Low-Emission Vehicles by Public Institutions, 3 Million KRW Fine for Violations

Asia Economy DB=Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] Starting next month, the measurement results of pollutants emitted from chimneys at over 600 workplaces nationwide will be disclosed in real-time on the internet.

The Ministry of Environment announced on the 24th that the amendment to the "Air Quality Preservation Act subordinate legislation" was approved at the Cabinet meeting and will be enforced from the 3rd of next month. The amendment mainly includes real-time disclosure of measurements from the Chimney Automatic Measuring System (TMS) and the revision of the emission charge calculation system.

First, from the 3rd of next month, the measurement results of pollutants emitted from workplace chimneys will be disclosed in real-time on websites such as open.stacknsky.or.kr. It will be possible to check in real-time the names of 625 workplaces with TMS installed, their locations, and the 30-minute average emission concentration per chimney.

The Ministry of Environment has been implementing early disclosure of measurement values since December 1st last year, ahead of the law enforcement. Currently, 487 workplaces are participating.

Geum Han-seung, Director of Air Environment Policy at the Ministry of Environment, said, "With the real-time disclosure of chimney emission concentrations, the public can check pollutant emission information of workplaces near their residences, and workplaces will pay more attention to managing emission facilities, which is expected to lead to efforts to reduce pollutant emissions."

Additionally, the basis for calculating and reasons for adjusting air emission charges have been revised. Previously, excess charges were calculated and imposed only when the business operator submitted an improvement plan after exceeding the emission limit. From now on, excess charges can be imposed as soon as the excess is confirmed, even if no improvement plan is submitted.

Improvements have been made to allow adjustment of basic charges not only when the business operator negligently miscalculates emissions but also when emissions are falsely reported.

Incentives will be provided to workplaces that voluntarily reduce air pollutants. Workplaces that have signed agreements with the Ministry of Environment and voluntarily reduced air pollutants will receive benefits such as reduction of basic charges and adjustment of self-measurement intervals.

The target for the low-emission vehicle supply goal system is defined as companies with an average annual vehicle sales volume of 4,500 or more. The low-emission vehicle supply goal system is a system that imposes a sales target of a certain percentage or more of low-emission vehicles on automobile dealers.

The mandatory purchase system for low-emission vehicles applies to public institutions owning six or more vehicles. This system requires purchasing a certain percentage or more of low-emission vehicles when buying new cars. If the mandatory purchase ratio is not met, a fine of up to 3 million KRW will be imposed depending on the number of violations.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.