Gyeonggi-do Issues Fewer 'Ozone Warnings' This Year

Number of Ozone Warning Days by Year. Graphic provided by Gyeonggi-do Institute of Health and Environment

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] This year, the number of 'ozone advisories' issued in Gyeonggi-do was 24 days, the lowest in the past five years.

The Gyeonggi-do Institute of Health and Environment announced on the 7th that from April to October this year, during the operation of the ozone warning system, 24 ozone advisories were issued over five months from the first advisory on May 11 to the last on October 1.

Looking at the number of ozone advisory days by year, there were 34 days in 2018, 37 days in 2019, 27 days in 2020, and 30 days in 2021.

The ozone warning system issues an advisory when the hourly ozone concentration is 0.12 ppm or higher, a warning at 0.3 ppm or higher, and a severe warning at 0.5 ppm or higher.

So far, no warnings or severe warnings have been issued in South Korea.

Ozone is a type of photochemical oxidant, a secondary pollutant generated by photochemical reactions between nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons in the atmosphere under strong ultraviolet light.

Ozone is highly irritating, and continuous exposure can cause symptoms such as chest pain, coughing, nausea, and indigestion. It can worsen conditions such as bronchitis, heart disease, and asthma, so caution is necessary.

Gyeonggi-do has designated the period from April to October, when ozone concentrations rise, as the intensive ozone advisory management period and operates the ozone warning system divided into four regions: southern, eastern, northern, and central areas.

Ozone is closely related to weather conditions and occurs more frequently under conditions of high solar radiation and low wind speed. In May and July this year, rainfall was lower than average, and due to high temperatures and tropical nights, the number of ozone advisory days was highest at 6 days. However, overall air quality was good, and with an increase in average wind speed and rainy days compared to last year, the number of ozone advisory days decreased by 6 days from the previous year.

The Institute of Health and Environment provides an air pollution warning text message service for ozone and fine dust to protect residents' health, and free text alert services can be received by applying on the Gyeonggi-do Air Environment Information Service website.

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