Choi Woncheol, Mayor of Gongju, stated on the 19th, "By requiring mandatory reporting before using by-product fertilizers produced from various waste materials?regardless of quantity?we must eradicate the supply and use of substandard fertilizers."
At the Chungnam Mayors and County Governors Council held at the Korea Confucian Culture Promotion Institute in Nonsan on this day, Mayor Choi said, "We need to revise the reporting criteria under the Fertilizer Control Act to block the distribution of substandard fertilizers and strengthen measures to prevent environmental pollution."
By-product fertilizers made from agricultural by-products, manure, food waste, and other materials generated from agricultural activities must be reported to the relevant city, county, or district office at least seven days in advance if they are packaged or distributed in quantities exceeding 1 ton (1,000 kg or 1,000 liters).
If a waste disposal company is registered as a fertilizer producer, it can manufacture and supply by-product fertilizers using recycled resources such as food waste or sludge from wastewater treatment.
However, it has been reported that some companies, in an effort to reduce production costs, illegally distribute substandard fertilizers by disguising them as high-quality products without proper fermentation or decomposition, or by packaging them in quantities less than 1 ton to evade reporting.
As a result, there have been cases where large amounts of waste disguised as fertilizer were spread or buried on farmland, causing foul odors, water pollution, and serious environmental damage to local residents.
After fertilizer is applied, it mixes with the soil, rendering quality inspections invalid, which these companies exploit to avoid punishment for supplying substandard fertilizers.
Mayor Choi said, "We expect that farmers will be able to improve the agricultural environment by using safe and high-quality fertilizers," and added, "We will continue to do our best to prevent the distribution of substandard fertilizers and ensure that residents can live in a clean environment."
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