Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon. (Photo: Prime Minister’s Office)

The government announced comprehensive steps to combat fine dust, calling for restrictions on operating private vehicles in some cases.

A meeting of state affairs coordination, presided over by Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon at the Seoul Government Complex on Nov. 8, approved emergency and normal countermeasures against fine dust.

In order to reduce the operation of diesel cars, said to be a major culprit of fine dust in high concentrations, the government declared the official disbanding of “Clean diesel policy” in which diesel cars with lower pollutants are given incentives such as a reduction in parking fares and toll charges for cars entering downtown sections of each city.

The public sector will be required to raise the portion of eco-friendly cars to 100 percent by 2020, while diesel cars will be banned from streets by 2030, except in the case alternative cars are not available.

The participatory former President Roh Moo-hyun government allowed the operation of diesel cars and the ex-president Lee Myung-bak government introduced a clean diesel policy.

At that time, the rationale was that diesel cars had higher fuel efficiency than gasoline-fueled vehicles.

These policies have resulted in raising the portion of diesel cars from 36.3 percent in 2011 to 39.4 percent in 2014 and to 45.5 percent last year.

Diesel cars stood at 9.58 million units out of 22.53 million vehicles registered as of last year.

Given the fact that small shop operators and businessmen have a higher ratio of using diesel cars, the government decided to give an additional 4 million won on top of the existing subsidy of 1.65 million won for buying 1-ton LPG trucks after scrapping their diesel cars.

The government also plans to raise the current subsidy of 4.4 million and 7.7 million won for owners who scrap mid- and large-sized diesel trucks to reduce such vehicles whose exhaust emissions are high.

The Ministry of Environment said, “Detailed plans to reduce the portion of diesel cars such as the expulsing of old diesel vehicles, discouraging the purchase of new diesel vehicles and the abolishing of restrictions on the using of LPG cars will be established accord to the diesel car reduction roadmap.”

The ministry readjusted the scope of the shutdown of thermal power plants to cut down on fine dust, caused by such pollutants. Samcheonpo Thermal Power Units 1 &2, built more than 30 years ago, have been so far ordered to close down during spring time between March and June. The operation of Samcheonpo Thermal Power Units 5&6 whose emissions are three times higher than the units 1 & 2 will be stopped.

The ministry also ramped up countermeasures against fine dust inflow from abroad.

The government plans to expand projects to collaborate with China’s regional governments, such as applying Korea’s excellent environment technologies to the installation of air pollution prevention facilities in China.

The Korean government established a Korea-China environment cooperation center in Beijing in June.

The government plans to strengthen emergency steps to reduce dust emissions. Dust emission reduction steps, in place in the public sector, will be mandatory for the private sector from next Feb. 15. From that date, the operation of privately-run cars will be restricted from hitting the streets according to exhaust emission classifications.

The strengthening of emergency dust reduction steps will enable preemptive steps to combat fine dust.