Dobong-gu Thoroughly Disinfects Sand in Children's Park Playgrounds

August 20 - September 10, Steam Disinfection of Sand Playgrounds and Play Equipment at 39 Children's Parks... 37 Sand Playgrounds (4,309㎡) and 49 Play Facilities in 39 Children's Parks, Frequent Disinfection, Biannual Parasite Inspections, and Annual Heavy Metal Testing Conducted

[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] Dobong-gu (Mayor Dong-jin Lee) will steam disinfect all 37 sand playgrounds within the entire parks, including children's parks, to create a safe and clean park environment where children can freely enjoy the sand playgrounds.

The targets are 37 sand playgrounds (4,309㎡) and 49 play facilities located in children's parks, Choansan Neighborhood Park, and Ssangmun Neighborhood Park.

Recently, amid the spread of COVID-19, concerns about contamination of sand playgrounds in parks due to cat feces and other pollutants have increased more than ever.

Accordingly, from August 20 to September 10, the district is disinfecting all sand playgrounds in children's parks throughout Dobong-gu to prevent infectious diseases and ensure that children with weak immunity can use the facilities in a safe and pleasant environment.

Steam disinfection is a high-temperature steam method that is more effective than the conventional method of turning over the sand to sterilize it.

The process proceeds in the following order: ▲removal of foreign substances such as trash and cat feces mixed in the sand ▲turning over the sand to improve ventilation ▲first solar disinfection ▲final high-temperature, high-pressure steam disinfection.

In addition, places with insufficient sand or those that fail parasite and heavy metal inspections will have new sand laid and undergo additional tests such as parasite inspections.

Furthermore, to prevent COVID-19, along with sand disinfection, playground equipment frequently visited by children is also being disinfected using the steam disinfection method.

Along with this, since the second half of last year, the district purchased steam sterilization equipment directly and formed a dedicated team for sand playground disinfection. Starting this year, they have strengthened occasional disinfection to once per quarter, completing disinfection of all 37 sand playgrounds and 49 play facilities in the entire parks twice in April and May.

Moreover, parasite inspections are conducted twice a year and heavy metal inspections once a year to maintain clean and safe playgrounds.

Mayor Dong-jin Lee of Dobong-gu said, “With the resurgence of COVID-19 and the high risk of infection indoors and outdoors, we hope that this steam disinfection of sand playgrounds in parks will ease residents' concerns even a little. We will do our best to create a park environment where both children and parents can feel safe.”

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