Marine Debris, Groundwater, Fine Dust... Public, Private, and Academic Sectors Join Forces to Develop Solutions

Ministry of Science and ICT - Ministry of the Interior and Safety - Local Governments, Kick-off Report Meeting on the 29th
'Science and Technology Utilization for Resident-Engaged Local Problem Solving Project' in Full Swing

Reference photo.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] A project has begun to solve highly tangible issues such as floating waste in ports and groundwater well contamination through cooperation and communication between research institutions, residents, and local governments.

The Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced on the 29th that they have selected 10 major tasks for this year’s project to solve regional problems with resident consensus using science and technology, and will begin full-scale implementation from May.

Since last year, the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety have identified urgent regional issues from local governments (59 cases), selected problems that can be solved scientifically and technologically, and then invited researchers to address these issues. As a result, 10 projects were selected for implementation this year, with a total budget of 5 billion KRW.

First, Gwanak-gu in Seoul and Incheon National University will develop autonomous driving-based safety patrol service technology for residential areas with single women households. Utilizing robots and drones, the system will automatically conduct patrols, warnings, and crackdowns in major crime-prone areas within the region, and create a rapid response system linked with the police and control centers in emergency situations.

Busan City, together with Pusan National University, will develop a platform (Port Through) to prevent the spread of infectious diseases from overseas incoming ships. This includes building a database of crew members (nationality, age, etc.) and residents near the port (work type, contact frequency, etc.), advancing a non-face-to-face screening system, and developing drones for specimen transportation. Dalseo-gu in Daegu and Keimyung University will establish a customized real-time fine dust monitoring and response system reflecting residents’ daily experiences. Through the establishment of an Internet of Things (IoT)-based sensing system, they will create a fine dust map of the Seongseo Industrial Complex and develop monitoring and alert systems.

Inha University and Michuhol-gu in Incheon will design a smart farm for old downtown areas utilizing vertical walls of vacant commercial spaces. They will build a small-scale urban agriculture platform involving residents by utilizing increasing vacant spaces and explore ways to use urban landscaping for cultivating edible, medicinal, and specialty crops. Ulsan City and the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology will research technology to reduce seasonal odor-causing substances that may leak during factory equipment maintenance and repair. The main focus is on developing and field-testing odor removal technology through process fluid replacement (neutralization/purification/recovery).

Gyeonggi Province, in collaboration with the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials, will develop a cooling system technology for high-temperature poultry facilities using gas heat pumps. They plan to create cooling technology that blocks or minimizes indoor unit corrosion of cooling devices installed in poultry farms, develop dust-resistant cooling devices for livestock, and study methods to prevent electrical short circuits.

Wonju City in Gangwon Province and Seoul National University of Science and Technology will develop an intelligent integrated management system for small-scale water supply facilities. They plan to create software and apps utilizing artificial intelligence (AI), IoT, water quality sensors, and intelligent imaging to manage small-scale water supply facilities using groundwater and valley water in rural and mountainous areas.

Chungcheongnam-do Province and the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology will develop a high-efficiency remote autonomous unmanned waste collection robot for marine debris removal. They will research an unmanned automatic collection robot and control system specialized for the West Coast to handle floating waste in ports and harbors that harms fishermen and tourism resources. Suncheon City in Jeollanam-do and Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology will start a flood prediction system project. This involves data integration of tidal and rainfall forecasts and producing seawater prediction information using closed-circuit (CC) TV or drones to simulate and visualize flood levels. Jeju Province, together with the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, will conduct research on tracing groundwater contamination sources and verifying the effectiveness of grouting to block contamination. The core tasks include diagnosing contamination inside groundwater wells, identifying causes, improving contamination prevention facilities, and developing water quality recovery techniques.

The Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety held a kickoff briefing at the Government Sejong Convention Center in the morning with local government and research institution officials to begin full-scale research. On this day, the Ministry of Science and ICT, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and local governments signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to establish a mutual communication and cooperation system and collaborate on regulatory and institutional improvements. They plan to complete related technology development by June next year, start practical application and deployment from October, and then expand and disseminate the solutions to other local governments facing similar issues.

Yong Hong-taek, 1st Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, said, "To improve the quality of life for the people using science and technology, it is most important for science and technology researchers to actively approach and communicate with the public and local communities." He added, "We will spare no effort to actively support communication between local residents and researchers so that problem-solving outcomes that can be felt on the ground are produced."