Gyeonggi-do Mandates Installation of 'Noise Meters and CCTV' at Construction Sites

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Gyeonggi Province has decided to mandate the installation of noise and fine dust measuring devices and closed-circuit television (CCTV) at construction sites with a total floor area of 1,000㎡ or more, commissioned by the province and Gyeonggi Housing and Urban Corporation (GH), except in unavoidable cases.

Gyeonggi Province announced on the 13th that it has prepared the "Measures to Strengthen Environmental Management at Gyeonggi Province Public Construction Sites," which will be implemented starting this month.

This measure comes in response to the continuous increase in complaints from residents near construction sites regarding noise, vibration, and dust damage.

According to data from the Ministry of Environment, nationwide noise complaints reached 143,181 cases in 2019, a 34% increase compared to 106,283 cases in 2015. Among these, construction site noise accounted for 107,794 cases, representing 75.3%.

Complaints related to scattered dust also rose by 84.5%, from 22,827 cases in 2015 to 42,120 cases in 2019. Of these, construction site scattered dust complaints accounted for 39,613 cases, or 94%.

The situation in Gyeonggi Province is similar. Of the 30,864 noise and vibration complaints received by the province in 2019, 22,881 cases (74%) were related to noise from roads or apartment construction.

Accordingly, the province has strengthened regulations to require the installation of noise and fine dust measuring devices at public construction sites (with a total floor area of 1,000㎡ or more), except in unavoidable cases, and to install electronic display boards that show real-time measurement values.

Additionally, to prevent environmental pollution that may occur at construction sites, CCTV will be installed at major vehicle entry and exit points and locations with a clear view of the construction site.

As of May, there are a total of 156 public construction projects commissioned by the province, of which 82 sites (53%) generate scattered dust. Specific construction sites using equipment that produces noise number 91, accounting for 58% of the total.

The province will apply the mandatory measures to new contracts as a principle and will expand the application of these strengthened environmental management measures to ongoing projects as much as possible, except in unavoidable cases.

Furthermore, the province will attach information boards at construction site entrances detailing the construction company, construction period, operation status of pollution prevention facilities, and the environmental management status of the site to alleviate simple inconvenience complaints from residents due to lack of information and to enhance trust in construction management.

In addition to public construction projects, the province will request cooperation from city and county governments to post information on construction projects that generate scattered dust, noise, and vibration above a certain scale on their respective websites.

The province will also promote institutionalization to ensure that these environmental management measures at construction sites can be sustained.

Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, emphasized, "Noise and scattered dust generated at construction sites are major causes that harm residents' living environments and must be improved." He added, "To improve the quality of life for residents, we will prepare various measures to ensure that these environmental management measures at construction sites spread not only to projects commissioned by the province but also to the private sector."

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