2021 Ministry of Environment Budget Approximately 11 Trillion Won... Increased by 93.8 Billion Won During National Assembly Review
Additional Reflections on Carbon Neutrality and Flood Response... 1.1 Trillion Won Invested in Electric Vehicle Distribution and Infrastructure
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The Ministry of Environment's budget for next year has been decided at 11.1715 trillion won, an increase of about 1.6 trillion won compared to this year. Of this, 4.5 trillion won will be invested in Green New Deal projects. During the National Assembly review process, budgets for projects such as achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, flood response, and support for hydrogen charging station operations were increased.
On the 2nd, the Ministry of Environment announced that the 2021 budget, amounting to 11.1715 trillion won, which is a 17.1% (1.6321 trillion won) increase compared to this year's original budget, passed the plenary session of the National Assembly.
An official from the Ministry of Environment stated, "We will actively implement Green New Deal projects such as the spread of future vehicles, creation of smart green cities, and fostering of green industries," adding, "We will focus financial resources on carbon neutrality and strengthening environmental safety nets in response to the climate and environmental crisis."
The finalized budget increased by 93.8 billion won compared to the government's proposal during the National Assembly review process. Budgets for establishing the foundation for achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, preparing flood countermeasures, and supporting hydrogen charging station operating costs were increased by 177.1 billion won. Budgets for improving air quality in underground stations, expanding public wastewater treatment facilities and repairing wastewater pipelines, and installing organic bio-gasification facilities were reduced by 83.3 billion won.
The Ministry of Environment will invest 4.5 trillion won in Green New Deal projects next year. The budget for electric vehicle distribution and charging infrastructure construction will increase from 800.2 billion won this year to 1.1226 trillion won next year. The budget for hydrogen vehicle distribution is set at 441.6 billion won. A new budget of 1.47 billion won was also allocated to support fuel purchase costs for hydrogen charging stations.
A budget of 52.6 billion won was allocated to the smart green city project, which provides customized environmental improvement solutions for local areas. The foundation for green industry growth will also be strengthened with 14.6 billion won for creating a clean air industry cluster and 39.6 billion won for nurturing talent in green convergence technologies.
Additionally, 12.5 billion won in budget necessary for implementing the long-term low-carbon development strategy (LEDS) to be submitted to the international community at the end of this year was additionally secured during the National Assembly review process.
Specifically, 1.8 billion won will be spent on pilot carbon neutrality projects such as installing renewable energy facilities in six public buildings and environmental basic facilities. A budget of 2.5 billion won was allocated for refining sector-specific scenarios to achieve the 2050 carbon neutrality goal and research projects analyzing social and economic costs due to climate change.
Projects such as local government carbon neutrality support (3.43 billion won), nationwide carbon neutrality practice campaigns (1.2 billion won), international cooperation for climate change response (2.6 billion won), and support for companies subject to direct greenhouse gas regulation (5 billion won) will be promoted.
To respond to the climate crisis, the Ministry of Environment plans to automate flood prediction and analysis based on big data and improve the flood forecasting system. Budgets of 12.3 billion won for comprehensive water resources research and 49.9 billion won for installation and improvement of hydrological survey facilities were allocated.
Regarding the smart water management system, projects such as ▲dam smart safety management (15 billion won) ▲wide-area water supply smart management system construction (18.9 billion won) ▲local water supply smart management (426.4 billion won) ▲smart sewage management system construction (20.4 billion won) will be promoted.
To prevent the tap water larvae incident, a total project cost of 229.7 billion won will be spent to strengthen hygiene management targeting 72 water service providers and 123 water purification plants by 2022. A new budget of 41.2 billion won was allocated for next year.
Measures to reduce fine dust emissions include projects such as ▲vehicle emission reduction projects (628.2 billion won) ▲introduction of next-generation remote equipment and 3D tracking management (17.4 billion won) ▲operation of IoT systems for small-scale workplaces (1.9 billion won) ▲focused management of fine dust vulnerable areas (3 billion won).
In addition, the budget for waste treatment, which has increased due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, was also increased. The budget for the recycled goods stockpiling project was decided at 25.9 billion won, an increase of 16.5 billion won compared to this year. Budgets of 2.6 billion won for supporting recycled goods quality improvement and 5.4 billion won for supporting reuse of reusable packaging and tableware were newly allocated.
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