Chungnam, Pilot Operation of Budget System for Greenhouse Gas Reduction Recognition

[Asia Economy (Hongseong) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Chungnam Province has been selected as a pilot project site for the Ministry of Environment's 'Local Finance Greenhouse Gas Reduction-Aware Budget System' and will carry out the pilot project until April next year. Three local governments, including Chungnam, Busan City, and Seoul Eunpyeong-gu, were selected for this project.

According to the province on the 6th, the Greenhouse Gas Reduction-Aware Budget System is implemented under the 'Framework Act on Carbon Neutrality and Green Growth for Climate Crisis Response.'

The core of the system is to analyze the contribution to greenhouse gas reduction when preparing budgets and funds and reflect it in financial management.

Central government ministries plan to apply the budget system from next year following the revision of the National Finance Act in March last year.

However, since the Local Finance Act and Local Accounting Act have not been amended, local governments currently find it difficult to introduce the budget system immediately.

Nevertheless, the province actively responded to the Ministry of Environment's pilot project application aiming to prepare for the introduction of the budget system next year to establish a system foundation for realizing 'carbon neutrality by 2045,' ultimately achieving participation in the pilot project.

Accordingly, the province will sequentially proceed with projects such as classifying climate impacts (reduction, emission, neutrality, etc.) in the budget proposal, preparing budget documents, comprehensive analysis, and report writing.

Based on the pilot project, it is expected that a stable system for classifying greenhouse gas reduction projects and preparing budget documents will be introduced, enhancing the feasibility of achieving carbon neutrality.

Meanwhile, the province is currently establishing a basic plan aiming for carbon neutrality by 2045 and plans to finalize the provincial plan in line with the national plan announcement scheduled for March next year.