• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
• /
• v.34 no.1
• /
• pp.1-15
• /
• 2018

Nation-wide systematic and comprehensive measurements of air quality criteria species have been made over 340 sites currently in Korea since 1990. Using these data, temporal and spatial trends of $SO_2$, $PM_{10}$, $NO_2$, $O_3$, CO and $O_x(NO_2+O_3)$ were analyzed to characterize and evaluate implementing efficiency of air quality policy and regulations. Due to strict and effective policy to use cleaner fuels in late 1980s and 1990s, the primary pollutants, such as $SO_2$, CO, and $PM_{10}$ decreased sharply by early 2000s in all parts of Korea. After this period, their concentrations declined with much lower rates in most parts of Korea. In addition, isolated but noticeable numbers of places, especially in major ports, newly developing towns and industrial parks, sustained high levels or even showed further degradation. Despite series of emission control strategies were enforced since early 1990s, $NO_2$ concentrations haven't changed much till 2005, due to significant increase in number of automobiles. Nevertheless, we confirmed that the staggering levels of $NO_2$ and $PM_{10}$ improved evidently after 2005, especially in Seoul Metropolitan Area (SMA), where enhanced regulations for $NO_2$ and $PM_{10}$ emissions was imposed to automobiles and large emission sources. However, their decreasing trends were much lessened in recent years again as current air quality improvement strategies has been challenged to revise further. In contrast to these primary species, annual $O_3$, which is secondary product from $NO_2$ and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), has increased consistently with about 0.6 ppbv per year in every urban part of Korea, while yearly average of daily maximum 8-hour $O_3$ in summer season had a much higher rate of 1.2 ppbv per year. Increase of $O_3$ can be explained mainly by reductions of NO emission. Rising background $O_3$ in the Northeast Asia and increasing oxidizing capacity by changing photochemistry were likely causes of observed $O_3$ increase. The future air quality policy should consider more effective ways to lower alarming level of $O_3$ and $PM_{10}$.

• Analytical Science and Technology
• /
• v.18 no.4
• /
• pp.344-354
• /
• 2005

This study was carried out to evaluate the performance of a small chamber sampling and analytical method for the measurement of total volatile organic compounds (TVOC) and formaldehyde (HCHO) emission from building materials. While VOC was determined by the adsorbent tube sampling and sequential thermal desorption coupled with GC/MSD analysis, formaldehyde sampled with DNPH-silica cartridge was analyzed by HPLC. Wide-range performance criteria such as repeatability, desorption efficiency, emission chamber recovery test, duplicate precision, breakthrough volume and method detection limits were investigated for the evaluation of small chamber method. The overall precision of the small chamber sampling and analytical methods was estimated within 20~30% for target compounds. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that the small chamber sampling and analytical method can be reliably applied for the measurement of building materials pollutants.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
• /
• v.17 no.3
• /
• pp.337-344
• /
• 1999

This study was carried out to investigate the influence of spa sewage on water quality and chemical contents in the paddy soil along stream from 1997 to 1998. Concentration of $PO_4, SO_4, Cl, NH_{4}, Ca, Na$ and COD in the spa sewage were lower than standard for agricultural usage, and were lowered as the sewage flew to the into stream. The concentration of $SO_4$in spa sewage was over the criteria for agricultural usage in the inlet, but was lower than criteria for agricultural usage by inlet of non polluted stream water. Concentration of pollutants in the sediment of water channel were the highest in the inlet site. There were no pollutants accumulation in the paddy soil where spa sewage was irrigated. It may be resulted from nutrients uptake of rice plant and self purification of paddy soil. On the while, considering electric conductivity and nitrate in spa sewage, this results suggest that long-term irrigation of the spa sewage may be required general management with some decreasing fertilization.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
• /
• v.26 no.3
• /
• pp.377-386
• /
• 2010

Introduction of TBELs into Korean environmental regulatory system for wastewater may require very careful considerations and appropriate modifications of the TBELs applied in US. The Korean regulations for wastewater are based on uniform regulatory criteria for wastewater effluent discharge and are quite different from the individual permit system in US. In addition, the toxic pollutants regulated in Korea are much less than those in US. Therefore, the effects of TBELs application on the pollutants reduction and the economic feasibility should be carefully assessed for different categories of wastewater sources. In this study, the applicability of TBELs for the industrial categories of Korea was discussed. The TBELs were derived for a sample category, the pulp paper paperboard manufacture, based on the previously reported analytical data from 52 facilities of the domestic pulp paper paperboard manufacture in Korea. It was suggested that the BAT effluent limitations were BOD 30 mg/L, $COD_{Mn}$ 40 mg/L, SS 40 mg/L, T-N 30 mg/L and T-P 4 mg/L and that the allowable effluent loads were $0.31{\sim}1.75kgCOD_{Mn}/ton$-products. Due to the limitation of insufficient data, there were difficult to obtain the important factors to derive more systematic and accurate limitation standards for the pollutants such as the 'Long Term Average (LTA)', the 'Product Normalized Discharge Flow (PNDF)', and the 'Variability Factor (VF)'. However, as the first trial of TBELs determination based on the all available analytical data reported, the procedure and the outcome of the study may provide valuable insight on application of TBELs in Korea.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
• /
• v.27 no.3
• /
• pp.322-333
• /
• 2018

This study was carried out to measure atmospheric environmental improvement effect and estimate its social benefit of thermal power plants through Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for quantitative analysis about operational performances of EIA. In this study, 'EIA outcome' is defined as whether or not the system is implemented, therefore, environmental standard to be followed by each project and consultation contents were compared. In total 60 cases of thermal power plant construction projects that have been consulted over the past 10 years since 2010, major air pollutants have been significantly reduced after the implementation of EIA. The $PM_{10}$ reduced annual 3,745 tons, $NO_2$ by 74,569 tons, and $SO_2$ by 37,647 tons, which were estimated at approximately 240 billion won~5 trillion 967 billion won per year for social benefit. This means the total cost of power plant operations will be cut to 7 trillion 192 billion won~178 trillion 994 billion won over a 30-year period. The reduced amount of air pollutants emitted by energy generation facilities across the country is worth 50%, and its economic value is larger than the annual Current Health Expenditure in Korea. This is meant by the fact that all projects are subject to uniform criteria under the existing relevant regulation, but that each project plans are optimized according to the characteristics of target areas and projects through the process of EIA.

• Journal of the Korean institute of surface engineering
• /
• v.12 no.3
• /
• pp.207-216
• /
• 1979

Environmental pollution or contaminations caused by various kinds of pollutants have become one of most serious problems of our time. Environ mental pollution is the unfavoralble alteration of our surroundings, through direct or indirect effects of changes in energy patterns, rediation levels, chemical and physical constitution and abundances of organisms. These changes may affect humans directly or through their supplies of water and of agicultural and other biological products, their physical objects or possessions, or their opportunities for recreation and appreciation of nature. Pollutants that meet the criteria of this definition of environmental pollution are numerous: gases (such as sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides) and paniculate matter (such as smoke particles, lead aerosols, and asbestos) in the atmosphere; pesticides and radioactive isotopes in the atmosphee and in waterways; sewage, organic. chemicals, and phosphates in water; solid wastes on land; excessive heating (thermal pollution) of rivers and lakes; and many others. Some of these pollutants are introduced into the environment naturally, others by human actions, and most in both ways. Our major concer is with environmental pollution resulting wholly or largely as a by-product of human activities, because these can be controlled most readily. Environmental pollution cannot be solved by science and technology alone. It should be handled by an interdisciplinary approach with combined methods of science and technology as wen as social science disciplines for the better solution of this critical problem. In this respect, introducing "Environmental Science," a new scientific approach for the solution of environmental problems, which is now widely accepted by most developed countries of the world will be very helpful for systematization of theoretical basis for a new scientific approach to environmental pollution. Environmental science is "the study of all systems of air, land, water, energy, and life that surround Man. It includes all sciences directed to the system-level of understanding of the environment, drawing especially upon such disciplines as meteorology, geophysics, oceanography, and ecology, and utilizing to the fullest knowledge and techniques developed in such fields as physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics and engineering as well as many social science disciplines, such as economics, such as economics, law, political science and public administration." The components of this discipline are not new, for they are drawn from existing areas of science within biology chemistry, physics, and geoscience. What is really new about environmental science, however, is it siewpoint - its orientation to global problems, its conception of the earth as a set of interlocking, interacting systems, and its interest in Man as a part of these systems.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Rural Architecture
• /
• v.24 no.3
• /
• pp.23-30
• /
• 2022

In this study, in order to grasp the current situation of indoor environmental pollution and indoor ventilation in one-room around the university in the post-corona era, we analyzed the experimental data and conducted a questionnaire survey on university students. By analyzing the content, the effects of formaldehyde, dust and other pollution on the human body, which are usually not easily detectable, are digitized and more easily taken into account. Among the experimental results, the concentration of VOC and HCHO, gas pollutants among indoor pollutants, exceeded the recommended criteria of the Ministry of Environment in most studio apartments. Overall, the average CO₂ concentration was lower than the Ministry of Environment's maintenance standard (1000ppm), but it was relatively high in summer and winter, and it is believed to be caused by cooling and heating in an enclosed space. The levels of PM2.5 and PM10, particulate pollutants, increased in November and December, and it is believed that ventilation defects due to degradation in external temperature. There was no clear difference between the two types, and there was a very high correlation between PM2.5 and PM10, HCHO and VOC. It was found that temperature was closely correlated with all sources except CO₂, and humidity was closely correlated with all sources except PM2.5 and PM10. Health risk assessment was conducted for formaldehyde. The average ECR of studio R2 in May was 3.91E^-4, and the ECR figure in September was 3.65E^-4, which was very high compared to other residential spaces. The R2 level was calculated as 4 people per 10,000 people in the lifetime risk of cancer of residents, exceeding the allowable risk. R8 also showed higher ECR results than other spaces after R2, especially in October, 2.01E^-4, six times higher than R7 measured in October, and 1.87E^-4 in July, four times higher than R9.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
• /
• v.32 no.3
• /
• pp.305-319
• /
• 2016

This study was carried out to evaluate the performance of two sampling methods, i.e., adsorbent tubes and canisters, for the measurement of ambient volatile organic compounds (VOCs). A total of 24 target VOCs were selected from a list of 48 priority hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) in Korea. The two sampling methods were investigated with a wide range of performance criteria such as repeatability, linearity, and lower detection limits. In addition, mean relative errors (MRE) and mean duplicate precisions (MDP) were estimated by inter-lab comparison studies for duplicate field samples. Precisions for the two methods appeared to be well comparable with the performance criteria recommended by USEPA TO-15 and TO-17 for canister and adsorbent methods, respectively. Correlations and variations between the VOCs concentrations determined by the two methods were generally good in most cases. However, MREs and MDPs for individual VOCs appeared to be widely ranged, depending on each VOC. This implies that the two methods have its own advantages and disadvantages in determining a variety of VOCs in ambient air, and neither of which has absolute superiority. Finally, 9 of 24 VOCs were found to be difficult to determine by either methods due to their unstability in a canister, and lack of appropriate standard materials. Thus, it is suggested that development of measurement methods for such unstable VOCs is an urgent task from a viewpoint of HAPs management.

• KIEAE Journal
• /
• v.10 no.4
• /
• pp.9-17
• /
• 2010

The purpose of this study is to draw out objective bases for selecting various applicable facilities in case of the establishment of rainwater management strategies. To do so, sixteen facilities were selected from decentralized rainwater management systems that induce rainwater infiltration and detention as well as centralized end-of-pipe type infiltration and detention facilities in local areas. With these facilities, it attempted to evaluate them in terms of sustainability, pollutant elimination, flood control capacity and costs and subsequently analyzed correlations between each characteristic. The outcomes of the analysis were as follows: First was the analysis of characteristics between decentralized rainwater management systems and end-of-pipe rainwater management systems. From the decentralized rainwater management systems, the mulden-rigolen system and grass swale at street level had the highest in the total of the four items while the totals of the underground detention tank and temporary detention site were highest in end-of-pipe rainwater management systems. After analyzing the correlation between different types of facilities and each variable, it can be said that decentralized rainwater management systems have a higher correlation than end-of-pipe rainwater management systems in terms of sustainability whereas the latter are better in flood control capacity than the former. Second, the analysis of correlation in variables of each facility is as follows: first, there is a negative correlation between sustainability value and flood control capacity value; and there is a positive correlation between flood control capability and pollutants elimination. In addition, it revealed that the higher the flood control and pollutant elimination capability the higher the facility costs. Based on these assessments, it is possible to use them as objective selection criteria for facility application in case of site development project or complex plan.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
• /
• v.22 no.5
• /
• pp.737-747
• /
• 2006

Ministry of Environment (MOE) of Korea has been implementing the water quality management policy to focus on the control of organic matters (BOD and COD) for 28 years since 1978 when the water quality standards had been established. However, the government and the public have begun to recognize the necessity of creating the best water environment for people and aquatic life, and also formulating the various measures of water pollution, Consequently, MOE of Korea is establishing the basic plan of water environment management, with the vision of "Clean Water, Eco River 2015." The major targets of water environment management plan are to maintain ecosystem health and to protect water quality from various hazardous substances in water bodies. In order to achieve the major targets, it is essential to amend the water quality standards, which bring about the systematic management of various pollutants and healthy ecosystem. Introduction of the new techniques of water environment assessment is also prerequisite to maintain sustainable water environment. These can be accomplished under the consideration of following suggestions in environmental quality standards. First, several criteria should be complemented in water quality standards; they include the improvement of the current water quality classification system, the strengthening and supplement of relevant parameters considering human health in the standards, the introduction of biotic indices, and management standards on eutrophication. Secondly, it should be considered to introduce the biological water quality standards using biotic indices and the management standards for sediments. Lastly, it needs to introduce or develop an ecological status classification which could be used in the assessment of the water environment as a whole.