A total of three facilities to be installed and operated by next month
Leading nationwide no-smoking policies... Creating a high-quality smoke-free environment
Seocho-gu, Seoul (Mayor Jeon Seong-su) is introducing Seocho’s unique ‘open-type smoke ventilation smoking facility model’ that satisfies both smokers and non-smokers, taking measures to prevent secondhand smoke.
On the 20th, Seocho-gu announced that it has installed and begun full operation of the nation’s first ‘Seocho Open-Type Smoke Ventilation Smoking Facility’ equipped with air curtains on the side streets of Gangnam Station (around Seocho-daero 78-gil). Next month, two additional facilities will be installed in the area, operating a total of three locations on the side streets of Gangnam Station.
The area around the side streets of Gangnam Station has a high flow of people and is densely packed with commercial facilities such as restaurants and office buildings, where indiscriminate smoking has been occurring. The district office determined that effective measures were necessary to minimize secondhand smoke, leading to the installation of this smoking facility.
The ‘Seocho Open-Type Smoke Ventilation Smoking Facility’ measures 2.4 meters wide, 7.2 meters long, and 3.4 meters high, featuring a structure supported by three pillars on a Han River silver-white base. It is designed to accommodate up to 20 people simultaneously, with a design emphasizing openness.
The district office expects this facility to present a new paradigm for smoking facilities. The core idea is to create a high-quality smoke-free environment by encouraging smoking in designated facilities from the perspective of ‘coexistence’ that considers both smokers and non-smokers.
This facility is designed to accommodate both smokers who dislike enclosed smoking rooms due to cigarette odors and non-smokers who are uncomfortable with cigarette smoke. According to the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, when installing outdoor smoking facilities, it is recommended that at least 50% of the total five sides?including four walls and the roof?be designed as open.
Reflecting this recommendation, Seocho-gu explains that although the facility is open-type, it minimizes exposure to cigarette smoke and odors both inside and outside. Air curtains are installed on three sides to enhance the blocking effect of external cigarette smoke, and four smoke ventilation purification devices using a patented vortex method are mounted on the roof to purify and then discharge cigarette smoke, significantly reducing odors inside the facility. Additionally, motion sensors are installed to automatically stop operation 10 minutes after smokers leave, and 12 ashtrays with automatic extinguishing functions are installed on the three pillars.
Near the smoking facility, the ‘Seocho No-Smoking (Smoking) Zone QR Guide Board’ and an automatic voice guidance system directing smokers to the facility have also been installed. Through this, the plan is to encourage smoking within the facility and reduce illegal cigarette butt littering.
The district office verified the effectiveness based on quantitative and qualitative results such as design models, smoke ventilation effect measurements, and satisfaction surveys. In 2023, to establish coexistence measures for smokers and non-smokers and improve smoking and cigarette butt issues, the ‘Gangnam Station Side Street Social Problem Solving Design Service’ was conducted to develop smoking status, smoking facility location selection, and design.
In November 2023, a small-scale open-type smoke ventilation smoking facility was pilot-operated near Banpo Shopping Town Building 7, proving its effectiveness. Measurements of ultrafine dust and nicotine concentrations commissioned to a professional institution confirmed the smoke ventilation effect. The installation of air curtains and expansion of ashtrays proposed in the service results were reflected in this smoking facility.
Meanwhile, Seocho-gu is promoting nationwide leading smoking cessation policies. Notable examples include the nation’s first designation of a no-smoking zone within 10 meters of children’s park boundaries in March last year, the insertion of a ‘smoking cessation education QR code’ on the nation’s first smoking violation confirmation paper, the highest number of crackdowns among Seoul’s autonomous districts last year (12,536 cases, an average of 35 cases per day), and the nation’s first tobacco denormalization education ‘Youth Health Haeyoung’ fostering critical thinking about tobacco.
Due to these efforts to create a smoke-free environment, Seocho-gu received the Minister of Health and Welfare Commendation at the ‘Excellent Smoking Cessation Project Evaluation’ commemorating World No Tobacco Day last year, and the ‘Grand Prize for Best Performance’ in the smoking cessation environment creation category at the ‘2024 Seoul Smoke-Free City Performance Awards.’
Mayor Jeon Seong-su said, “The Seocho open-type smoke ventilation smoking facility is a model created after years of consideration, aiming to minimize secondhand smoke and promote coexistence between smokers and non-smokers,” adding, “We will continue to implement secondhand smoke prevention and smoking cessation policies that residents can feel.”
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