"Replacing Single-Use Items with Reusable Containers"... Gangseo-gu Makes 'Heo Jun Festival' an Eco-Friendly Event

Gangseo-gu's reusable container return booth to be installed at the Heo Jun Festival (Photo by Gangseo-gu Office)

Gangseo-gu, Seoul announced on the 11th that the '21st Heo Jun Festival,' held from the 13th to the 15th around Seoul Botanic Park, will be conducted as an eco-friendly festival that significantly reduces the use of disposable products.

At festivals held annually by many local governments, numerous disposable items such as single-use plates and wooden chopsticks are used for food sales, resulting in a massive amount of waste after each event.

To make the '21st Heo Jun Festival,' the district's representative festival held for the first time in four years, an eco-friendly event, the district decided to fully adopt reusable containers. Accordingly, 16 traditional herbal food stalls and 7 food trucks operating on the 14th and 15th during the festival will be supplied exclusively with reusable bowls, spoons, forks, and other utensils.

Used reusable containers will undergo strict sterilization and cleaning processes by specialized companies and will be supplied every morning to participating vendors and organizations at the festival.

Additionally, to facilitate the smooth collection of reusable containers, return booths will be installed throughout the event site to minimize inconvenience for visitors. The district expects that the use of reusable containers will drastically reduce the enormous amount of waste generated at each event.

A district official stated, “Starting with this festival, we will strive to significantly reduce disposable products generated at Gangseo-gu festivals,” and added, “We ask residents participating in the festival to bring tumblers, personal cups, and other items to join in protecting the environment.”

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