Seoul City Criminally Charges 62 Illegal Vehicle Painting Shops Emitting Harmful Substances

Illegal Stamp Toxic Gases, Cancer Risk and Other Negative Effects on Citizen Health

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] The Seoul Metropolitan Government's Civil Affairs Judicial Police Unit announced on the 29th that, as a result of intensive crackdowns on illegal painting shops targeting automobile repair shops since last October, 62 illegal automobile painting shops that discharged harmful air pollutants without permission were caught and criminally charged.

This crackdown was a special inspection conducted on about 200 businesses with signs such as 'Automobile Exterior Restoration · Dent · Polishing' located throughout residential and commercial areas in the city, focusing on whether pollution prevention facilities were installed, as part of fine dust management during the winter season. Among the 62 shops caught in this special crackdown, 16 were caught painting during vulnerable times such as nighttime and weekends, and 3 were caught painting on the street.

The pollutants emitted into the air during illegal automobile painting are volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and total hydrocarbons (THC). If these pollutants are not properly treated, they can have fatal effects on citizens' health, including causing cancer.

Investigators from the Seoul Civil Affairs Unit conducted multiple stakeouts regardless of time, including weekends, holidays, nighttime, and early morning, to crack down on illegal automobile painting activities, and also thoroughly searched for violating businesses by analyzing waste within the workplaces.

According to the 'Air Environment Conservation Act' and the 'Automobile Management Act,' if painting work is carried out without reporting the installation of emission facilities, the offender may face up to 5 years imprisonment or a fine of up to 50 million won.

Kim Myung-joo, head of the Seoul Civil Affairs Judicial Police Unit, said, “The businesses caught this time are located around citizens' daily environments and are discharging pollutants into the air without permission, which can threaten citizens' health.” He added, “We will continue to work closely with the relevant autonomous districts and the Automobile Inspection and Maintenance Business Association to conduct frequent crackdowns on illegal automobile painting activities to eradicate such illegal acts.”

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