Korea's Carbon Dioxide Concentration Higher Than Global Average... "Sharp Increase Last Year"

KMA National Institute of Meteorological Sciences Publishes '2019 Earth Dash Monitoring Report'
Annual Average CO2 Concentration 419.9ppm
Increase of 2.7ppm from Previous Year, Exceeding Global Average

Due to the impact of Typhoon Haishen, the 10th typhoon, giant waves are crashing against the breakwater in Sadong-ri, Ulleung-gun, Gyeongbuk Province on the afternoon of the 7th. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] Last year, the concentration of carbon dioxide in South Korea was found to be higher than the global average announced by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

According to the "2019 Global Atmospheric Monitoring Report" by the Korea Meteorological Administration's National Institute of Meteorological Sciences on the 17th, South Korea's annual average carbon dioxide concentration last year was 417.9 ppm, higher than the global average concentration of 409.8 ppm. The steep increase is also a concern. Last year's carbon dioxide concentration increased by 2.7 ppm compared to the previous year. This is higher than the increase rate of 2.4 ppm over the past 10 years (2009?2018). The global carbon dioxide concentration increase rate over the past 10 years was 2.3 ppm annually.

The Korea Meteorological Administration believes that the reason why carbon dioxide concentrations were particularly high worldwide last year, not only in South Korea, is due to the occurrence of high-temperature phenomena, which increased greenhouse gas emissions from oceans and soil. The strong northwesterly winter monsoon winds weakened somewhat last year, leading to an increase in fine dust concentrations. Although South Korea's annual average fine dust values have generally shown a decreasing trend since observations began, the annual average fine dust value at Anmyeondo increased by 8.3% compared to the past 10 years. In particular, at Gosan in Jeju Island, it increased by 16.7% compared to the recent 8-year average.

Kim Jong-seok, Administrator of the Korea Meteorological Administration, said, "Above all, what is important is the accurate observation and data acquisition of greenhouse gases that can cause the climate crisis," adding, "We will support the successful implementation of climate change policies through reliable information."

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