Indoor Air Quality Measurement Standards for PC Rooms, Stricter than Daycare Centers, to Be Relaxed

Ministry of Environment Reviews Relaxation of Indoor Air Quality Measurement Standards for PC Bangs

The indoor air quality measurement standards for PC rooms, which were stricter than those for daycare centers and postpartum care centers, will be relaxed.

The Small and Medium Business Ombudsman announced on the 22nd that the air quality measurement standards for PC rooms, which were subject to excessive area criteria compared to other facilities, will be eased. The Ministry of Environment accepted the Ombudsman's and industry’s recommendations that the stricter standards compared to facilities for infants and the elderly were unfair.

According to the Indoor Air Quality Control Act, multi-use facilities used by unspecified large numbers of people, newly constructed apartment complexes, and public transportation vehicles must maintain and manage indoor air quality appropriately. PC rooms are also included in the indoor air quality management facilities, and if the total floor area is 300㎡ or more, indoor air quality must be measured once a year.

The PC room industry has voiced that the measurement standards for PC rooms are excessive compared to other facilities such as daycare centers. The area criteria for air quality measurement targets are set at 430㎡ or more for daycare centers and 500㎡ or more for postpartum care centers, which is much larger than the area for PC rooms. For elderly care facilities and academies, the standard is 1000㎡ or more.

A PC room owner who raised related difficulties to the Ombudsman said, "It seems the regulations are still based on past situations when people smoked freely without separate smoking areas," and appealed, "PC rooms are spaces frequently visited by teenagers and couples, so we manage the air quality more cleanly than anywhere else."

In response, the Ombudsman created a consensus for improving related regulations through the 'Small Business Alley Regulation Breakthrough' event held in November last year. The event involved discussions on unreasonable regulations related to alleyway commercial districts, followed by a vote by a national jury on the necessity of improvements.

Subsequently, the Ministry of Environment accepted the PC room industry's recommendations and announced that it would set appropriate standards after gathering expert opinions and conducting field surveys. The Ministry explained that it would review the area criteria for air quality measurement targets by the end of this year, considering fairness with other facilities.

Kim Hee-sun, head of the Ombudsman Support Group, pointed out, "While strict indoor air quality management is necessary for PC rooms mainly used by teenagers, the changed conditions of PC rooms have not been reflected," and added, "Applying excessive standards compared to other facilities was unreasonable." She also said, "This improvement is expected to significantly reduce the burden on business owners," and "The Ombudsman will continue to actively work to improve unreasonable regulations."