The National Green Growth Strategy
South Korea was at the forefront of recognizing the need for a national strategy to reduce their greenhouse emissions and to mitigate the potential threat climate change would have on the well being of it's constituents.They recognized a DOUBLING of green house emissions, for their nation, between 1990-2005 as their nation expanded it's industrialized and agricultural activities and exploded into the global economic markets.
So in July 2009 the president announced a "National Strategy for Green Growth" which would guide them for the next 50 years with a plan to reduce their carbon foot print and to promote green economic growth.The strategy also gave strong consideration to moving Korea thru the world financial crisis, to increase employment and the transition Korea to a world leader in Green Productivity.
So in July 2009 the president announced a "National Strategy for Green Growth" which would guide them for the next 50 years with a plan to reduce their carbon foot print and to promote green economic growth.The strategy also gave strong consideration to moving Korea thru the world financial crisis, to increase employment and the transition Korea to a world leader in Green Productivity.
Whilst the longer term national strategy was designed to be the guideline for Korea, it was identified that shorter term strategies were to be implemented in 5 year blocks allowing for economic review and adjustment to the plan without the nation loosing track of their long term objectives and goals.The five year strategies also allowed for community understanding and support, government continuity and more adaptable financial planning in national and local budgets.
The Budget for the First 5 Year plan
In the first block (2009-2013)The government committed to spending 2% of GDP to construction projects emphasising the importance of “Greening the land, water and building the green transport infrastructure” .This plan incorporated over 600 predominately community orientated infrastructure projects of national significance. These included upgrading and extension of national railway infrastructure with the intention of promoting railway travel a the future green way to commute. Improvements to sewerage and water projects,predominately concentrating on the rejuvenation of 4 major river systems and the construction of a tiered weir system to control water flow.
The Target:
Korea's policy measures to address climate change
1. Voluntary and Negotiated Agreement Systems
Energy saving incentives were given in the business sector, whereby if companies signed agreements with the government guaranteeing to reduce energy consumption and if they met green house gas emission targets ,in both time frame reduction and strategy implementation,they would be offered low interest rate loans on energy saving infrastructure,tax incentives and technical support. The government monitored and assessed the data collected from the participating companies and whilst it wasn't economically viable ,it did allow for assessment of abatement costs and potential of environmental damage.
The government then implemented a mandatory Green House Gas and Energy Target Management system which they implements on the major energy consumers in waste management, transport,manufacturing,construction and power generation industries.Each company negotiated targets with the government to reduce consumption and emissions and if targets were not met harsh penalties were applied.
The government then implemented a mandatory Green House Gas and Energy Target Management system which they implements on the major energy consumers in waste management, transport,manufacturing,construction and power generation industries.Each company negotiated targets with the government to reduce consumption and emissions and if targets were not met harsh penalties were applied.
2.Energy efficiency programs
Compulsory energy efficient standards and labeling
Energy efficiency labeling ensure products such as air conditioners, refrigerators and appliances meet a minimal efficiency rating before they are suitable to be sold.
High efficiency appliance certification
Products rated with efficiency levels higher than legal requirements are given bonus ratings and special certification.Some of these products included oil fired hot water heaters,converters and LED lighting. This program has been introduced since 1996 and there are now more than 40 products awarded this accreditation.
Standby Electricity Reduction Program
This certification is granted to electrical appliances that automatically switch to standby mode when not in use,thus reducing energy consumption when products are not being fully utilized. Conversely products not meeting the standard must display a sticker warning consumers of the products inefficiencies.
Average Fuel Economy- AFEKorea launched a program in 2006 to reduce car fuel emissions. The program regulated the fuel economy of all car produced by each manufacturer,ensuring the average standards were maintained no matter what size engine a car may have.
The government provides regulating bodies to collect data as well as to check and asses the standards being maintained by the industry . This information can be directly related back to carbon emission savings and the effectiveness of the program to green growth. |
3. Research
Thru the government's commitment to the green growth they also identified the need for internal resourcing and programming in the research and development of Green technologies. They enlisted the services of universities and formed private sector contributor partnerships to broaden the opportunity for researchers to gain more accurate and effective data in their quest to tackle the mismatch between ideals,human activity and spending.
Below is a table of he Core Green Technologies that were identified and their ranking in importance of projected implementation: |
The Recommendations
Assessment of the first five year plan came up with the recommendation (Box3) for Koreas green growth strategy.
It was noted that large scale infrastructure commitments entail risks that should be undertake with extreme caution. Longer term staged construction would allow for a decreased chance of failure, allowing for a more transparent implementation and would restrict governments from following Game plan winners rather than Green Growth success stories.