A Study on the Characteristics of Hazardous Pollutant Emissions in Korea from 2007 to 2016

Abstract

In this study, trends in hazardous pollution emissions in South Korea for the last decade were investigated to protect people’s health and contribute to the prevention of environmental risks by reducing emissions. It was found that hazardous pollution emissions increased from 47,688,000 kg in 2007 to 57,247,000 kg in 2016. Among them, Xylene and Toluene exhibited the highest proportions. 99% of hazardous pollution were emitted to the atmosphere. Among the Group 1 carcinogens, the top two substances (trichloroethylene, benzene) accounted for more than 80% of the emissions, and trichloroethylene took up the most. Carcinogen emissions also increased, and emissions from major industrial complexes represented approximately 30% of the total chemical emissions from all industrial complexes. Chemical emissions exhibited no significant relationship with particulate matter, cancers, and allergic diseases. It can be said, however, that the use of various chemicals has chemical accident risks. Owing to the nature of chemical accidents, an accident may lead to secondary damage. Therefore, it is necessary to prepare measures for the management of various chemicals and to perform continuous monitoring for reducing chemical emissions.

Article Highlights

• The purpose of this study was to identify the trends in Korea emissions of hazardous chemicals from 2007 to 2016.

• In 2007, 47,688,000 kg of chemical substances were emitted at 3012 places of business across the country while 57,247,000 kg were emitted at 3732 places in 2016. The number of workplaces and emissions increased by about 1.2 times over 10 years, and most of them were discharged to the environment through the atmosphere.

• The top five chemical substances accounted for 60% of the total chemical emissions. Xylene ranked first in 2007–2016, followed by toluene. Although slightly different depending on the year, it was found that Ethylacetate, Methylethylketone, Ethylbenzene, etc. are released a lot.

• In the case of carcinogens, dichloromethane, ethylbenzene, and trichloroethylene accounted for more than 65% of the total carcinogen emissions even though there were slight differences for each year. In addition, Group 1 and Group 2A materials tended to decrease, but emissions of Group 2B materials tended to increase continuously.

• Major industrial complexes with high emissions accounted for about 30% of the total industrial complex chemicals. Emissions were highest in Ulsan•Mipo Industrial Complexes. Various chemicals were used according to the characteristics of the industrial complex.

• Recently, the use of chemicals and their emissions have continued to increase. Consideration should be given to the management of chemicals in consideration of the regional characteristics of each industrial complex.