Jung Da-hyun is a reporter at The Korea Times, covering social issues in Korea, including foreign residents, education, environment and politics. Driven by a deep interest in people’s stories, she focuses on investigative and feature reporting through direct interviews and field coverage. She received the Amnesty International Korea Media Award for her “Deepfake Crisis at Schools” series. Reach her at dahyun08@koreatimes.co.kr. Always open to hearing your stories.
Korea strengthens climate response: New law empowers KMA as lead monitoring agency
A road and sidewalk are submerged in floodwater due to heavy rain in Busan, Sept. 21. Yonhap
By Jung Da-hyun
A new law to enhance Korea’s climate monitoring and forecasting capabilities took effect on Friday, granting the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) a central role in managing the nation’s response to the climate crisis.
Under this legislation, the KMA is designated as the primary agency responsible for legally mandated climate oversight, working in close collaboration with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.
The law, passed by the National Assembly in October last year, is designed to establish a comprehensive system for scientifically monitoring and forecasting climate change.
It entrusts the KMA with managing the country’s climate observation network, while the oceans ministry will oversee the monitoring of marine and polar ecosystems.
The KMA will provide critical climate forecasts on key indicators, including temperature, precipitation and sea surface temperatures, along with tracking phenomena like El Niño and La Niña, known to trigger severe weather on the Korean Peninsula.
Meanwhile, the oceans ministry will collaborate with the KMA, offering expertise on ocean-specific data, such as sea temperatures, salinity, currents, sea ice and sea levels, to inform future climate response strategies.
The law also establishes a legal framework for an integrated information system, ensuring data from both agencies is accessible for coordinated use in addressing the climate crisis.
In addition, the KMA is now officially designated as Korea’s lead agency for climate crisis monitoring and forecasting under the new climate law. The agency will develop a national framework for tracking and predicting climate change, including an overarching climate strategy and detailed annual plans.
As part of its mandate, the KMA will implement a five-year climate monitoring and forecasting plan and establish a national climate change scenario to guide long-term planning.
The agency will also issue guidelines to assist various ministries in creating their own climate response strategies. Once developed, these ministry-specific plans will be submitted to the Presidential Commission on Carbon Neutrality and Green Growth for unified oversight.
KMA Administrator Chang Dong-eon and Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Kang Do-hyung both underscored the critical importance of closely monitoring interconnected climate systems — atmospheric, oceanic and polar — and generating comprehensive climate forecasts.
They both highlighted that they will make an effort to make climate monitoring and prediction data widely accessible, aiming to support not only climate crisis policies across various sectors but also to enhance its practical use in everyday life.