Gov't issues emergency measures against 'very bad' levels of fine dust

Downtown Seoul is covered with ultrafine dust, Tuesday. The government issued emergency measures against fine dust as the level was “very bad” in the capital and surrounding regions. Yonhap

By Kim Hyun-bin

The Ministry of the Environment implemented emergency measures for fine dust in the capital and North Chungcheong Province, Tuesday, as levels in the areas rose to “very bad” due to an influx of pollution from China and the slow movement of air around the Korean Peninsula.

This is the first time for the central government to carry out emergency measures this winter. The measures are ordered when the level of ultrafine dust is forecast to exceed 50 micrograms per cubic meter.

In Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province, levels of PM 2.5, or ultrafine dust particles smaller than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, rose to “very bad.” The government categorizes the concentration of PM 2.5 between 0 and 15 micrograms per cubic meter as “good,” between 16 and 35 as “normal,” between 36 and 75 as “bad,” and more than 75 as “very bad.”

The PM 2.5 rose to nearly 100 micrograms per cubic meter in Seoul in the afternoon.

Under the emergency measures, an alternative driving day for odd-even license numbers was implemented for civil servants at public institutions in the capital and North Chungcheong Province. Only vehicles with license plates that end with an even number were allowed on the roads Tuesday.

In the capital, the use of high-emission vehicles ― those labelled grade 5 ― was banned with violators facing a 100,000 won ($84) fine.

Operators of factories that emit large amounts of pollution, such as petrochemical or cement plants, in the regions were forced to reduce their operating hours, and 10 coal power plants had their operations suspended.

Officials from the environment and industry ministries, and local governments in Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi and North Chungcheong provinces met to review the implementation of the emergency measures.

Health authorities also advised people to wear fine dust protective masks while outdoors, while elderly people with respiratory problems and young children were cautioned to stay indoors.

Weather experts said the fine dust levels rose because smog from China is being blown by the wind toward the peninsula and the air over the country has remained stagnant.

“By late Wednesday, strong and fast northwesterly winds will blow over the peninsula, dispersing the accumulated fine dust particles. On Thursday, the sky will clear, while temperatures will again fall,” an official at the Korea Environment Corp. said.

In the meantime, the environment ministry said the government had approved of its environment improvement plan for 2020 to 2040. According to the plan, it aims to reduce the yearly average PM 2.5 level to 10 micrograms per cubic meter by 2040 ― the annual level was 23 micrograms as of 2017.