Gyeonggi-do Enacts Nation's First Ordinance on Prevention and Management of Serious Accidents

Gyeonggi Provincial Government Gwanggyo New Office Building

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[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Gyeonggi Province will enact and implement the 'Ordinance on the Prevention and Management of Serious Accidents' starting January next year. This is the first time a local government has created an ordinance related to serious accidents.

Gyeonggi Province announced on the 20th that the ordinance, which specifically outlines the responsibilities and tasks related to serious accidents at the local government level, was recently passed by the Gyeonggi Provincial Council at the proposal of Governor Kim Dong-yeon.

In particular, the province explained that this ordinance holds special significance as it focuses on fundamental prevention and management measures for serious accidents, unlike the current 'Serious Accident Punishment Act,' which emphasizes post-event punitive measures such as mandatory obligations and penalties.

The ordinance first requires the province to establish and implement a serious accident prevention and response plan within the scope defined by the current 'Serious Accident Punishment Act.' To this end, the ordinance includes provisions on securing and supporting personnel and budgets, as well as establishing and implementing measures to prevent recurrence in the event of a serious accident.

It also codifies the formation and operation of a public-private cooperation body to advise on policies for serious accident prevention and management. This advisory body includes 47 experts from 19 fields such as industrial safety, hazardous materials, firefighting, electricity, gas, food hygiene, and occupational environment.

Furthermore, the ordinance designates public facilities frequently used by residents, such as stadiums, museums, performance halls, and art galleries managed by the province, as priority management targets. In addition to regular inspections mandated by the 'Serious Accident Punishment Act,' it includes additional measures such as identifying and sharing harmful and risky factors and conducting surprise on-site inspections.

Additionally, the ordinance includes provisions for consulting on the identification of harmful and risky factors and improvement plans for facilities subject to serious accident regulations with insufficient safety management. Consultations will be conducted after receiving applications from business owners, safety and health managers, and workers in the first and second halves of the year.

The province plans to open and operate online educational courses related to serious accident prevention through the 'Gyeonggi Lifelong Learning Portal (GSEEK)' site in February next year. It will also conduct group training sessions for public officials and civilians on serious accident prevention and response measures during the first half of next year.

Lee Jin-chan, Director of the Safety Management Office of the province, said, "Now is the time to focus on efforts to prevent serious accidents rather than worrying about penalties under the Serious Accident Punishment Act." He added, "The enactment of this ordinance is expected to be a good opportunity to raise awareness of serious accidents among both managers and workers at the workplace once again."

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