Jung Min-ho has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2012, mostly covering social and political issues. He currently belongs to the Politics & City Desk where he covers topics such as health, labor and human rights. Prior to joining the team, he was responsible for covering North Korea and sports. His article about a biosecurity breach of Middle East respiratory syndrome won him an award from the Korea Science Journalists Association in 2016. He is also the co-author of the book, "Medical Pioneers of Korea" (2019). He served as the head of the international relations committee at the Journalists Association of Korea from 2021 to 2023.
Gov't pushes to eliminate non-recyclable plastic waste
Some plastics are easier to recycle than others. GETTYIMAGESBANK
By Jung Min-ho
By Jung Min-ho
The government will offer incentives to companies that make it convenient for consumers to recycle their plastic containers in an effort to reduce non-recyclable plastic waste.
The Ministry of Environment said Tuesday that it had revised enforcement regulations to offer tax incentives to plastic product manufacturers that make recycling easier.
The ministry will classify nine types of plastic packaging products into four grades ― the best, good, fair and bad ― and companies in the top category will receive benefits, which will be determined soon.
According to the ministry, two things are critical for recycling: color and “detachability.” Clear plastics are always preferred than those with colors and consumers should be able to detach them from other materials easily.
These criteria will determine the grades of plastic products and people will be able to check the grade marks.
The new system is expected to help environmentally conscious consumers' choices.
The ministry said it will also try, hopefully by the end of the year, to convince beer producers to use recyclable containers instead of black plastic bottles, which are difficult to recycle.