Busan City Detects 8 Illegal Hazardous Chemical Handling Companies

Busan Special Judicial Police Conduct Planned Investigation at Over 60 Sites to Prevent Hazardous Chemical Safety Accidents
Detected Violations Including Exceeding Handling Amounts and Non-Compliance with Accident Preparedness Material Management Stand

Status of hazardous chemical handling companies detected by the Busan Special Judicial Police.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Busan City (Acting Mayor Byun Seong-wan) Special Judicial Police announced on the 23rd that from July to September, they conducted a ‘Planned Investigation on the Handling and Management of Hazardous Chemicals’ targeting about 60 companies that use, manufacture, or sell hazardous chemicals, and referred 8 companies to the prosecution for violating the ‘Chemical Substances Control Act.’

This investigation was carried out by four members, including the head of the Special Judicial Police Environmental Investigation Team, to prevent accidents that could occur at hazardous chemical handling workplaces in advance and to block illegal activities taking advantage of the chaotic social atmosphere caused by COVID-19.

The types of violations found at the companies were ▲exceeding the permitted amount of hazardous chemicals displayed or stored (2 cases) ▲non-compliance with accident preparedness material management standards (1 case) ▲non-compliance with hazardous chemical handling standards (2 cases) ▲failure to record in the self-inspection logbook (3 cases).

Since the authority for hazardous chemical permits and inspections was transferred to the Nakdong River Basin Environmental Office on January 1, 2015, Busan City has felt the need for cross-inspections of related companies and has been conducting planned investigations since 2017.

Kim Jong-gyeong, Director of the Busan City Citizen Safety Office, stated, “Chemical accidents can cause significant casualties if mishandled, so prevention is paramount,” and added, “We will do our best to crack down to prevent accidents such as toxic chemical explosions and leaks at hazardous chemical handling workplaces.”

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