Songpa-gu Receives Award for Two Consecutive Years in Local Government Food Waste Management Evaluation

Ministry of Environment Performance Evaluation Report: Minister's Commendation for Waste Reduction Rate and Leadership Engagement Recognized
"An Exemplary Model for Other Local Governments," Praised by Evaluation Panel with Nationwide Benchmarking Inquiries Flooding In

Songpa-gu (Mayor Seo Gang-seok) received the Minister of Environment Commendation in the ‘2024 Food Waste Management Local Government Performance Evaluation’ hosted by the Ministry of Environment.

With this, the district has been recognized for its excellent food waste management performance for two consecutive years.

The evaluation method involved selecting outstanding local governments by 17 metropolitan units out of 226 basic local governments nationwide, and finally selecting five local governments through on-site evaluations by a professional evaluation panel consisting of private, public, and academic sectors.

Detailed criteria such as food waste management status, the level of interest from the head of the institution, waste generation volume, fee status, installation and operation of RFID food waste meters, management of collection, transportation, and treatment facilities, and efforts to suppress waste generation were reviewed.

In particular, the district was recognized for achieving a groundbreaking reduction in food waste discharge. The amount of food waste, which was 78,000 tons in 2013 when the food waste volume-based system started, was significantly reduced by about 39% to 47,000 tons in 2023.

Above all, the determination of the head of the institution was crucial to the reduction. With the mayor’s interest and full support, the district expanded special benefits for awards in the annual apartment complex reduction competition to increase residents’ interest, and promoted various waste reduction projects such as joint inspections and consulting for large-scale waste generators in cooperation with the city, district, and waste association. As a result, in 2023, the district achieved a remarkable 3% annual reduction performance, reducing about 2,000 tons compared to the previous year.

Based on the nation’s highest level of RFID meter distribution rate, the district improved the operation method by immediately cleaning the meters upon collection, and for meters that reached the end of their durability, it became the first in the country to promote annual replacement by sharing costs with residents, receiving good evaluations for efforts toward efficient maintenance and management.

A district official stated, “The evaluation panel praised Songpa-gu’s food waste management as a model for others, and benchmarking inquiries are pouring in from across the country,” confirming the district’s performance evaluation results.

Additionally, the district, which owns its own waste treatment facilities, completed odor reduction construction last year to fundamentally improve odor issues, and is promoting the installation of an odor measurement system this year to maintain the improvement effect, making special efforts for systematic food waste management.

Seo Gang-seok, Mayor of Songpa-gu, said, “Receiving the commendation as an outstanding local government for two consecutive years is a proud recognition of the district’s efforts in food waste management both internally and externally,” and added, “We will fulfill our administrative role to prioritize public interest, ensure effective waste treatment, and create a pleasant living environment.”