Concentrations of heavy metals in fine dust in Gyeonggi Province significantly increased during this year’s Lunar New Year holiday (February 10).
The Gyeonggi-do Institute of Health and Environment announced on the 10th that measurements of heavy metal concentrations in fine dust at monitoring stations in Pyeongtaek and Gimpo showed a significant increase in strontium, barium, potassium, and copper during the Lunar New Year period. Strontium, barium, and potassium are known components that determine the colors of fireworks.
The day with the highest concentrations at both monitoring stations was February 11, the day after Lunar New Year, with strontium measured at 0.0486?0.0518 μg/m³, barium at 0.1477?0.1513 μg/m³, copper at 0.0418?0.0518 μg/m³, and potassium at 1.7788?2.3641 μg/m³. However, these levels sharply decreased from February 14, after the holiday period.
The Institute explained that strontium and barium, which are related to fireworks, showed high concentrations on the second day of Lunar New Year both this year and last year, suggesting that substances from fireworks celebrations in China were carried by air currents to the Pyeongtaek area.
Additionally, on February 26, two days after Jeongwol Daeboreum (the first full moon of the lunar year, February 24), concentrations of related heavy metals strontium and barium rose again to 0.0063?0.0115 μg/m³ and 0.0169?0.02762 μg/m³, respectively.
Since there were almost no changes in heavy metal concentrations during the Lunar New Year periods of 2020 and 2021, when gatherings and industrial activities were restricted due to COVID-19, the increases observed last year and this year are attributed to the influence of fireworks during Lunar New Year and Jeongwol Daeboreum.
Gwon Bo-yeon, director of the Gyeonggi-do Institute of Health and Environment, stated, "The concentrations of strontium and barium in the ambient air generally do not fluctuate significantly. Since fireworks are not traditionally used in Korea during Lunar New Year, and considering the backward trajectory analysis of air currents flowing through the Yellow Sea from the Shandong and Liaodong Peninsulas?where large cities such as Beijing and Tianjin are located?it is concluded that heavy metal substances related to fireworks were introduced into Korea."
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