Geumcheon-gu Advances as a 'Carbon Neutral Leading City' in Response to the Climate Crisis

On June 5th, Environment Day, 'Carbon Neutral City Declaration Ceremony and Eco Life Day' Held at District Office Plaza
Geumcheon Eco & Energy Center Opens, First in Seoul Autonomous Districts to Train Solar Doctors and Consultants, Serving as a Hub for Promoting Carbon Neutral Culture
'Geumcheon-style Carbon Neutral Practice Mileage' Program to Launch in July

Geumcheon-gu (Mayor Yu Seong-hoon) announced that on June 5th, Environment Day, starting at 10 a.m., it will hold a ‘Carbon Neutral City Proclamation Ceremony’ and ‘Eco Life Day’ with residents at the district office plaza, promoting various policies to advance as a city leading carbon neutrality.

Geumcheon-gu is establishing the Carbon Neutral Green Growth Basic Plan (2025?2034) with the vision of ‘Sustainable Environmental City Carbon Neutral Geumcheon’ to realize carbon neutrality by 2050. The initial goal is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% compared to 2018 levels by 2030.

In the first part of the Carbon Neutral Proclamation Ceremony, the ‘2050 Carbon Neutral Vision’ will be announced, and representatives from the public, private, academic, and corporate sectors will jointly declare their commitment to practicing carbon neutrality. The second part will continue with ‘Geumcheon Eco Life Day.’ Geumcheon Eco Life Day is a unique carbon neutrality practice campaign in Geumcheon-gu, a day to self-assess and pledge to practice green living. There will be 18 exhibition and experience booths where participants can learn about and directly experience carbon neutrality.

On April 26th, the district opened the ‘Geumcheon Eco & Energy Center,’ a community hub space promoting carbon neutrality culture in Geumcheon, located in Geumha Village, Doksan 1-dong. The center has a climate crisis clock indicating how much time remains until the Earth’s temperature rises 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels and a rainwater storage tank capable of holding 10 tons of rainwater.

The center will train solar power doctors and energy consultants, the first among Seoul’s autonomous districts’ energy-related institutions, to diagnose building energy efficiency. Through this, it plans to support low-carbon building policies and operate free building energy diagnostics to reduce energy consumption in the area. Additionally, it will promote the expansion of renewable energy, carbon neutrality support activities, and solar power potential surveys.

The district is also focusing on spreading a carbon-neutral culture with residents. It formed the ‘2050 Carbon Neutral Citizen Practice Group,’ consisting of 146 environmental activists from 14 organizations including residents, private groups, and companies. The group conducts various activities such as the ‘Geumcheon Eco Life Day’ campaign, greenhouse gas diagnostic consulting, and carbon neutrality promotion. Last year, they visited 148 locations and achieved a reduction of 8,062 kg of greenhouse gases.

Using the district office building, the ‘Geumcheon Eco Center,’ a climate environment education facility, was established, offering carbon neutrality education programs attended by about 9,000 people annually. Furthermore, the district supports voluntary participation and proactive activities of residents by holding contests for carbon neutrality practice projects for Geumcheon organizations or resident groups, waste reduction village community projects, and urban agriculture subsidy support projects.

Moreover, the district implements a greenhouse gas target management system for buildings and vehicles it owns. Since most greenhouse gas emissions come from buildings, it aims to identify energy waste factors by facility and improve aging facilities. Mayor Yu Seong-hoon stated, “By June this year, we will replace the old heating and cooling systems in the district’s comprehensive office building, which have low energy efficiency, with high-efficiency products to reduce energy use.”

Efforts are also being made to minimize paper use through digital documentation. Since January, executive meetings have been conducted using tablet PCs, and paperless meetings have expanded across all departments, saving 90,777 sheets of paper (261,438 grams of carbon) from January to May. Starting in 2025, a ‘QR Code Service for Civil Petition Form Completion’ will be established, allowing citizens to submit electronic files instead of paper forms for 75 types of permits and 10 types of civil petition forms.

Additionally, the district recycles 2,700 tons of waste wood annually as solid fuel, saving 103 million KRW in budget. To this end, last year, it signed an agreement with recycling companies to sell waste wood for fuel reuse. Every Thursday in front of the district office, an ‘Eco Resource Exchange Shop’ operates, exchanging PET bottles, cans, and paper packs for designated waste bags and tissue. Mayor Yu said, “Resource recycling helps conserve resources and minimize environmental harm, contributing to achieving carbon neutrality.”

Furthermore, Mayor Yu Seong-hoon announced, “Starting in the second half of this year, we will promote the ‘Geumcheon Green Mileage’ system, a Geumcheon-style carbon neutrality practice mileage program.” The ‘Geumcheon Green Mileage’ sets practice tasks such as recycling separation, using reusable containers, and using public transportation. Residents or local companies who carry out these tasks will receive incentives based on their performance. Incentives will be provided as Geumcheon G-Valley Love Gift Certificates, and outstanding companies will receive awards. The system will be established by June and operated from July.

Mayor Yu Seong-hoon of Geumcheon-gu said, “Rapid industrialization and population growth have caused a sharp increase in greenhouse gas emissions, leading to global warming and extreme weather events. We will continue to spread a culture of carbon neutrality practice so that residents can easily practice carbon neutrality in their daily lives and lead Geumcheon-gu to become a model sustainable carbon-neutral city.”