South Korea - The Korea Times

Korea's fisheries output up 1.2% in 2021

gettyimagesbank South Korea's fisheries output rose 1.2 percent last year on the back of improved production from the aquaculture sector, data showed Sunday.The total fisheries output amounted to 3.76 million tons in 2021, compared with 3.71 million tons tallied a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.In terms of value, the output came to 9.24 trillion won (US$7.7 billion), up 5.6 percent year-on-year, the data showed.The aquaculture sector led the overall growth, with its output increasing 1.1 percent to reach 2.33 million tons. Its value stood at 3.26 trillion won, up 12.8 percent.The deep-sea fisheries segment saw its output grow 0.4 percent to 438,799 tons last year, with its value jumping 25.8 percent to 1.31 trillion won, the data showed.The output from coastal fishing rose 1 percent to 941,271 tons, as the amount of mackerel and crab caught logged double-digit growth. But the value of the yearly output fell 5.1 p

Feb 6, 2022

Korea's fisheries output up 1.2% in 2021

Calls mount for stricter punishment of animal abusers

A cat brutally killed by a man in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, is seen in this Instagram post uploaded by the Korean Animal Rights Advocates (KARA), Tuesday. / Screenshot from KARA's InstagramBy Lee Hae-rinPublic outrage over light punishments handed out with regards to animal cruelty is rising, as critics say that leniency leads to the recurrence of similar crimes, even a year after the strengthening of the nation's Animal Protection Law aimed at taking stricter action against abusers. According to the Korean Animal Rights Advocates (KARA), Wednesday, a man is under investigation at Changwon Central Police Station on suspicion of brutally killing a cat that belonged to a restaurant owner. The man allegedly grabbed the feline by its tail, struck it down multiple times on a cement floor and fled the area when witnesses arrived, Jan. 26.KARA posted a petition on the Cheong Wa Dae website, Jan. 28, calling for sufficient punishment for the suspect, and garnered over 48,000 signatures as of 2 p.m. on Wednesday. According to the advocacy group, a similar incident of brutally killi

Feb 2, 2022By Lee Hae-rin

Calls mount for stricter punishment of animal abusers

2021 was the 2nd hottest year on record: Nat'l Weather Agency

A white heron rests by the Cheonggyecheon stream during a heat wave, Aug. 4, 2021, central Seoul. Korea Times file photoBy Lee Hae-rinLast year, 2021, was the second hottest year recorded in Korea due to climate change, a recent report by the nation's weather agency says.According to the climate analysis 2021 by the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) released Sunday, the average temperature last year was 13.3 degrees Celsius, 0.8 of a degree higher than the average of the previous years. It is the second highest average annual temperature recorded since the weather observation system was introduced nationwide in 1973.The nation experienced unprecedented high temperatures in spring and fall of last year and the overall temperature rise due to climate change.According to the analysis of the seasons, the monthly temperature gap was the greatest in January, as the temperature dramatically rose towards the end of the month by 5.4 degrees.The unusually warm weather in 2021 triggered the earliest cherry blossoms in Seoul since observation started in 1922, on March 24, 15 days earlier

Jan 24, 2022By Lee Hae-rin

2021 was the 2nd hottest year on record: Nat'l Weather Agency

Korea culls 427,000 chickens after two more H5N1 bird flu outbreaks

gettyimagesbank South Korean quarantine officials began slaughtering about 427,000 chickens Sunday as a precautionary measure after outbreaks of H5N1 avian influenza at two farms, according to the agriculture ministry.The cases of the highly pathogenic bird flu were reported at two chicken farms in Hwaseong, about 40 kilometers south of Seoul, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said.However, the ministry did not give a specific time frame on when the quarantine officials will complete the culling.This marks the 23rd and 24th cases of H5N1 found at poultry farms here this winter since Nov. 8.The highly pathogenic influenza is very contagious among birds and can cause severe illness and even death, especially among poultry.Quarantine officials slaughtered about 30 million poultry after an outbreak of avian influenza first reported between November 2020 and April 2021, according to data from Statistics Korea.The number of laying chickens in South Korea

Jan 23, 2022

Korea culls 427,000 chickens after two more H5N1 bird flu outbreaks

Nuclear energy crucial in fighting climate crisis: Seoul mayor

This photo shows an electric vehicle charging station in Seoul. Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan GovernmentBy Bahk Eun-jiSeoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon emphasized the necessity of nuclear power plants, saying that increasing electricity consumption by expanding the use of electric vehicles (EVs) cannot be a fundamental solution to the climate crisis.He pointed out that currently nearly 70 percent of electricity production in Korea relies on fossil fuels, and said he believes the country's experiment in phasing out nuclear power has gone on long enough under the Moon Jae-in administration over the past five years. “In fact, increasing electricity usage cannot be a fundamental solution to climate change,” Oh said in a press briefing at City Hall for the Seoul Metropolitan Government's five-year project to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, Thursday. Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon /Yonhap“Through such painful experiments, a consensus has been made among the public that nuclear energy is the most desirable direction for energy development in response to climate change.”He added, &l

Jan 20, 2022By Bahk Eun-ji

Nuclear energy crucial in fighting climate crisis: Seoul mayor

Environmental groups urge presidential candidates to address climate crisis

KBS drama under fire for animal abuse

In this screen capture uploaded to Instagram by Korea Animal Rights Advocates (KARA), a horse falls through the air before landing face-first on the ground in an episode of “The King of Tears, Lee Bang-won,” that aired on KBS, Jan. 1.By Lee Hae-rinKBS drama “The King of Tears, Lee Bang-won” is facing allegations of animal abuse from animal protection groups and viewers over a scene from the seventh episode which aired on Jan. 1. Korea Animal Rights Advocates (KARA) issued a statement on its website and Instagram, Wednesday, that the episode aired on Jan. 1 contains a scene where a horse appears to fall painfully to the ground.While moving fast with a rider on its back, the horse appears to do a faceplant, landing painfully on the ground. KARA suspects the horse was made to fall by a rope tied to its back legs, for the filming of a scene where a character falls from the horse.In behind-the-scenes video footage obtained by The Korea Times from KARA, Thursday, the horse is seen running forward, until a rope is pulled and the horse tumbles forward, landing on the

Jan 20, 2022By Lee Hae-rin

Cafes, fast-food chains required to charge deposits for disposable cups from June

gettyimagesbankDeposits will be needed to buy drinks using disposable cups at cafes and fast-food chains starting in June as part of efforts to reduce plastic waste spiking amid the pandemic, the environment ministry said Tuesday.Starting June 10, people will have to pay a deposit of between 200 won ($0.17) and 500 won per disposable cup they buy drinks in at coffee shops and fast-food chains.The deposit will be given back when they return the used cups to the stores for recycling. About 38,000 cafes and fast-food restaurants across the country will ask for deposits under the government's decision to apply the system to companies with over 100 branches, according to the ministry. Eateries will also be banned from using disposable cups at stores and encouraged to reuse items for deliveries.The ministry also said big stores, supermarkets, convenience stores and bakeries will be prohibited from using plastic bags starting Nov. 24.The measures have been announced as part of the government's plan to achieve carbon neutrality and move toward a sustainable circular economy. (Yonhap)

Jan 18, 2022

Cafes, fast-food chains required to charge deposits for disposable cups from June

LG Chem to build hydrothermal plastic recycling plant in Dangjin

gettyimagesbankLG Chem said Tuesday it is building its first plastic recycling plant in South Korea that will process used plastics using high-temperature steam, accelerating its push for clean materials.The plant, to be built in the southwest city of Dangjin by the first quarter of 2024, will have an annual capacity of 20,000 tons, and produce oil from plastic waste using a process known as supercritical pyrolysis, the company said in a press release. Supercritical pyrolysis is a technology that decomposes used plastic with steam at high temperature and pressure beyond a critical point and converts them into fossil-fuel replacement oils and chemicals that can be processed into new plastics.LG Chem will work with U.K.-based Mura Technology, which it has invested in for its proprietary pyrolysis technology, for the new Dangjin plant. More than 80 percent of the plastic waste from the new plant will be converted into renewable oils that can replace fossil fuels, with the remaining 20 percent of by-product gases expected to be reused as an energy source for operating relevant facilities

Jan 18, 2022

LG Chem to build hydrothermal plastic recycling plant in Dangjin

Police looking into report of animal abuse case using sausage-skewered fishhooks

This combination of photos captured from social media shows a batch of fishhooks skewered with mini sausages discovered at a park popular among dog owners in Incheon. YonhapPolice said Monday they were looking into a report of a suspected animal abuse attempt using sausage-skewered fishhooks at a park in Incheon popular among dog owners.Police said they received the report of the suspicious fishhooks in the park in the Bupyeong District of Incheon, 40 kilometers west of Seoul, at 9:45 p.m. Sunday. The authorities said they searched the park but failed to discover the hooks in question. The fishhooks were first made public by a dog owner who discovered them at the park and posted a photo on Instagram, Sunday."I found sausages lying around among leaves on the ground and dug into the ground thinking something was strange," the person wrote. The user described the sausages as being fixed to fishhooks and the connected fishing lines tied to a nearby tree.The person explained the park was popular among dog owners and insisted the placement of the fishhooks was apparently "not by mistake bu

Jan 17, 2022

Police looking into report of animal abuse case using sausage-skewered fishhooks

Korea confirms another highly pathogenic bird flu case

gettyimagesbankSouth Korea reported another highly pathogenic avian influenza case at a duck farm in a southwestern region, SundayThe farm is raising about 33,000 ducks in Yeongam, 384 kilometers south of Seoul, according to the agriculture and livestock ministry.It marked the 21st case of highly pathogenic avian influenza found at poultry farms this winter. The government has alerted local poultry farm owners to recently increasing outbreaks of avian influenza, urging them to keep an eye on their farms and immediately report any suspected symptoms.Highly pathogenic avian influenza is very contagious among birds and can cause severe illness and even death, especially among poultry. (Yonhap)

Jan 16, 2022

Environment & Animals