Coal crackdown

South Koreans want change. According to a survey of the Korean Medical Association, two-thirds of South Koreans opposed the construction of new coal power plants in 2016.

Although up to half of Korea’s air pollution comes from overseas, around 15% of domestic PM2.5 generation comes from coal plants.

The plan aims to cut 25% of emissions from coal plants by 2022, reduce coal-generated electricity and increase the proportion of energy that comes from renewables and natural gas.

In the short-term, new coal-fired power plant projects will be re-examined.

Five projects are in the pipeline. Three will still proceed as planned, with stricteremissions standards and the most advanced pollution-reduction technologies available. For the remaining two, the government will negotiate with the companies to switch them to natural gas. The corporations are likely to resist.

Coal plants that are more than 30 years old will be shut down from March to June each year, when seasonal air pollution is high. Those that are older still will be retired by 2022, earlier than their projected lifespans.

After these plants are dealt with, all new coal plant construction will be banned. Energy taxes will be reformed. Environmental and safety factors will be included in the costs of generating coal and nuclear.