Trucks lined up in front of a cement factory.
Various wastes brought from all over the country, such as waste plastics and waste tires, are loaded on them.
They are used as a substitute for bituminous coal, serving as both fuel and raw material for making cement.
Since being authorized to promote waste recycling, the amount of waste used has increased significantly over the past decade or so. By reducing bituminous coal imports while actually getting paid to process waste, it has become a major source of revenue for the cement industry.
Harmful substance emission levels have been measured and reported by the companies themselves.
This is the so-called "self-measurement" method.
[Lim Chang-soon / Jecheon Cement Residents' Representative: They say there is no problem with their self-measurement. They always say it is within the standard range. Even if they release the data, which is rare, they report it directly to the Ministry of Environment and do not give it to us.]
As backlash from nearby residents grew, the government launched its first commissioned study.
The survey results showed that total hydrocarbons exceeded legal limits at 10 out of 18 smokestacks in domestic cement plants.
Some places exceeded the limit by more than four times.
Total hydrocarbons are a group of substances combining carbon and hydrogen, which include harmful substances such as benzene and toluene, making them subject to strict regulation.
This contradicts the self-measurement results, which claimed that the limits were not exceeded.
[Yong Woo / National Assembly Climate and Environment Committee Member (Democratic Party): Because the characteristic of self-measurement is that it is often measured based on a specific point in time, it is difficult to accurately measure parts with high emissions and large variability.]
Since waste has lower calorific value compared to bituminous coal, it is estimated to cause incomplete combustion, thereby emitting more total hydrocarbons.
[Youkyung / Professor, Department of Environmental Engineering, Kwangwoon University: During times like summer, ozone advisories and the like are issued frequently, and hydrocarbons can be understood as pollutants that directly affect those aspects.]
Based on the results of this investigation, the government has decided to push for a plan where government agencies directly manage the measurement of total hydrocarbons, rather than leaving it to cement companies.
Reported by Chang Se-man | Written by Lee Seyoung | Video by Kim Yun-sung | VJ by Shin So-young | Produced by SBS Digital News
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