Preventing a Second Pyeongtaek Port Accident... Special Port Safety Act Passes Cabinet Meeting

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Haeyoung] To prevent the recurrence of port safety accidents like the one that caused the death of the late Lee Seonho during unloading operations at Pyeongtaek Port, a special law to strengthen port safety management will be enacted.

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries announced on the 27th that the 'Port Safety Special Act' was approved at the Cabinet meeting held on the same day. Accordingly, stevedores operating port workplaces must establish a safety management plan for all workers within the port workplace, report it to the government, and obtain approval.

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries will introduce port safety inspectors at local maritime affairs and fisheries offices nationwide. Port safety inspectors will continuously check the implementation of port safety management plans and demand corrective actions.

Each port must form a port safety council where labor, management, and government jointly participate to discuss matters related to accident prevention, and through this council, provide safety education to workers.

This is part of the 'Special Safety Measures for Port Workplaces' announced by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 5th, and once the special law is enacted, these measures will have legal effect and be enforced.

At the Cabinet meeting on the same day, an amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Fisheries Resources Management Act was also passed, which applies different closed seasons and minimum catch sizes to fishermen meeting certain conditions. The amendment allows general campgrounds to be established in fisheries resource protection zones, where previously only automobile campgrounds were permitted.