Plastic cups and containers will be banned from parks along the Han River in 2025, in an effort by Seoul City to reduce single-use plastics. The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced last Thursday comprehensive countermeasures against the surge of single-use plastic containers, sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Seoul city government will host an exhibition, Thursday, showcasing Korea s latest recycling technologies. The city authority will also host an event on the sidelines of the exhibition for visitors who bring their own tumblers.
The Seoul metropolitan government plans to expand the size of forested areas in the sprawling capital by 2025. The latest project is the city government s second bid to make the air in the metropolis cooler and cleaner by expanding forested areas. The first phase of the project was completed in 2021.
With temperatures already reaching levels seen in the sweltering summer months, the central and local governments as well as residents are increasingly concerned about rising electricity consumption as air conditioner use is increasing. Particularly this summer, El Nino has begun cranking up water temperatures surrounding the Korean Peninsula, contributing to the early arrival of the summer season.
In hindsight, the sky over Seoul in 2022 was at its cleanest in more than a decade, according to the city government. And the record, the authority said, will improve further and reach the level of advanced cities around the world.