Gimhae City is supporting facility improvements and early scrapping of old vehicles to reduce fine dust, but only 4% of vulnerable facilities, such as daycare centers and senior centers, have received support for dust reduction measures.
While the city manages the installation of prevention facilities and vehicle support, it does not separately evaluate the effectiveness of pollution reduction for each project.
This information comes from additional inquiries made by our agency regarding the 'Environmental Safety Net Strengthening' measures announced by the city on November 3. The city plans to invest 1.934 billion won in the low-emission vehicle and construction machinery project next year, but it has limited data to confirm how much these installations and enforcement efforts have actually improved air quality.
According to the city's official response, out of 871 facilities in Gimhae, including 290 daycare centers and 581 senior centers, only 34 (about 4%) have received support for fine dust avoidance and reduction facilities.
In the designated fine dust management area in Naewon-dong, 50 facilities have been installed, including 28 ventilation systems, 13 fine dust alert devices, 3 measuring devices, 3 suction mats, 2 air showers, and 1 shelter.
The figure of '50' refers to the number of devices, while '34' indicates the number of supported facilities, meaning that the locations where facilities were installed do not total 50.
The city stated that it is checking the operational status of these facilities and their usage during high fine dust events. However, it did not provide data on how much fine dust levels have changed before and after installation. These facilities were installed through a provincial subsidy program between 2017 and 2019, and there are currently no plans to expand them to other areas.
Additionally, the city has difficulty confirming the usage status of 37 designated fine dust shelters. Most are located in senior centers and administrative welfare centers, but the city does not separately track usage statistics for these shelters.
When high levels of fine dust occur, the city provides information on locations and usage methods through electronic boards, social media, and administrative welfare centers. Without understanding the demand for these facilities, it is challenging to assess the appropriateness of their placement and operation.
In terms of business management, issues related to inspection scope and repeated violations have been identified. There are 422 dust-emitting businesses in Gimhae, and the city inspected 152 (36%) this year, discovering 22 violations. This means that 14.5% of the inspected businesses were found to be non-compliant with reporting or dust suppression measures.
The city has issued complaints, warnings, fines, and improvement orders based on the nature of the violations. In response to further inquiries, the city acknowledged that there are cases of repeated violations and is currently re-evaluating compliance after penalties were imposed. However, the number of businesses with repeated violations and the status of improvements were not disclosed.
In the first half of this year, the city provided 215 million won for air pollution prevention facility installation for three small businesses and 522 million won for IoT measuring devices for 164 air emission businesses. The total amount invested in these two support programs is 737 million won.
The installation costs for prevention facilities are shared as follows: 50% from the national government, 16% from the provincial government, 24% from the city, and 10% from the businesses themselves. For IoT measuring devices, the breakdown is 40% from the national government, 8% from the provincial government, 12% from the city, and 40% from the businesses. The IoT devices are used to detect abnormal information such as power outages or communication failures. The city reports that there have been no cases of improper operation of emission or prevention facilities at supported businesses so far.
However, the city does not separately measure or evaluate how much the support for prevention facilities has actually reduced emissions. The city stated that it can check emission statistics from the National Fine Dust Information Center. The air quality around the three supported businesses is monitored by the Gyeongnam Health and Environment Research Institute, and the results will be assessed after the projects are completed.
In the vehicle sector, a notable decrease in registered vehicles has been observed. The number of grade 5 diesel vehicles in Gimhae dropped from 12,598 in 2022 to 5,155 by the end of September this year, a reduction of about 59%. Grade 4 vehicles also decreased from 14,848 to 8,297, a reduction of about 44%. The city explained that these figures include not only early scrapping supported by subsidies but also natural scrapping and changes due to registrations in other regions.
The city plans to regularly inform vehicle owners about management methods and cleaning application procedures to ensure that the emission reduction devices attached to existing vehicles maintain their performance. They also aim to communicate management information to vehicles that have changed ownership to reduce oversight.
Next year, the low-emission project will target 530 vehicles, including 440 operating vehicles and 90 construction machines. This includes 437 early scrappings of grade 4 vehicles, 2 installations of simultaneous fine dust and nitrogen oxide reduction devices, and 1 electrification modification of a 1-ton truck.
The scale of early scrapping for grade 4 vehicles represents about 5.3% of the currently registered grade 4 diesel vehicles. There are no separate priority support criteria for livelihood drivers, but small business owners can receive an additional 1 million won on top of the basic subsidy according to guidelines.
The annual average concentration of fine dust in Gimhae has been recorded at 21 µg/m³ in 2019, 13 µg/m³ in 2024, and 14 µg/m³ last year. The figure from last year is within the annual average air quality standard of 15 µg/m³, but it is 1 µg/m³ higher than the previous year. However, air quality is influenced by various factors, including weather and external inflows. In the absence of separate assessments of the reduction effects of individual projects, it is difficult to attribute concentration improvements to specific initiatives.
The city operates six air quality monitoring networks and 30 fine dust signal lights and plans to strengthen its response to high concentrations of fine dust during the winter and spring seasons.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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