Greenhouse Gas Concentrations on the Korean Peninsula Set New Record High Again

Publication of the Earth Atmosphere Monitoring Report

The Korea Meteorological Administration's National Institute of Meteorological Sciences announced on the 28th that the carbon dioxide concentration on the Korean Peninsula has once again reached a record high.

Anmyeondo, Gosan, Ulleungdo, Dokdo, and the global background concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2).
[Image provided by the Korea Meteorological Administration]

According to the Global Atmosphere Watch report, the background concentration of carbon dioxide at the Anmyeondo Climate Change Monitoring Station was recorded at 427.6 ppm last year. This is an increase of 2.6 ppm compared to 2022. The monitoring stations at Gosan (426.1 ppm) and Ulleungdo (425.6 ppm) also saw increases of more than 2.6 ppm compared to the previous year. Methane concentration at Anmyeondo rose by 14 ppb, nitrous oxide by 0.7 ppb, and sulfur hexafluoride by 0.7 ppt compared to the previous year.

The Korea Meteorological Administration, as South Korea's representative institution for the United Nations World Meteorological Organization's Global Atmosphere Watch program (WMO·GAW), has been monitoring climate change causative substances such as carbon dioxide at four locations on the Korean Peninsula (Anmyeondo, Gosan, Pohang, Ulleungdo·Dokdo) since 1997.

Yoo Hee-dong, Administrator of the Korea Meteorological Administration, stated, “Despite efforts worldwide, including on the Korean Peninsula, to achieve carbon neutrality, greenhouse gas concentrations are increasing. We will strive to produce high-quality greenhouse gas and global atmospheric monitoring data to support climate change response policies.”